Dead or Deader
by Dead Addict
Summary: Sookie searches for a missing Bill while she and Eric try to discover why vampires are dying from a mysterious illness. Sequel to "Dead or Undead" – recap included in Chapter 1. Post "Dead in the Family". Now completed.
1. Chapter 1

**RECAP of "Dead or Undead"**: Set after _Dead in the Family_; Victor is dead (tortured by Eric, killed by Sookie); Eric is King of Louisiana; Sookie's house was burned down (by Judith, who also burned down); Bill is MIA, last seen by Eric (who drove a metal stake into his chest); the IRS is targeting the two-natured including Sam and Alcide; Eric and Sookie just got human married (see _Hagar at Hooligan's_ for the bachelorette party).

**Chapter One**

Today definitely qualified as the most stressful day in months. I spent all morning shaking hands with what felt like the entire the staff of E(E)E – Extreme(ly Elegant) Events. It's not that I was angling for a job with Special Events, especially given my history with one of its partners, but a certain paranoid Viking had insisted that I "screen" every human, witch or were before they came to our house, which we didn't live in yet, to cater a reception for our wedding, which happened months ago, that we were holding for all of the local big wigs, who hadn't been invited to the real thing.

Actually, given the way the last two E(E)E catered events I attended had turned out, I thought maybe Eric was being more pragmatic than paranoid. I had been on my knees praying that Quinn, my more recent ex, wouldn't be involved in the organizing and it was quite a relief when he wasn't among the crowd. I picked up a few thoughts from the group that led me to believe Quinn was keeping as far away from this event as possible. I hadn't seen Quinn since the night Eric and I finally re-consummated our relationship, and truth be told I wasn't sure I even wanted to see him again.

Of course, then there was my other ex, also unseen for several months, though I was beside myself with worry over Bill. He hadn't been seen or heard from in five months since the night when Judith, his vampire-sister and current flame, had burned down my house and herself with it. (Okay, I did have a hand in Judith being burned in the fire, but it sounds a lot better this way and she was trying to kill me at the time). I had worried for a while that Eric really had killed Bill that night, but Eric assured me over and over that staking a vampire with an aluminum chair leg would not finally kill him, only humiliate him to the point of wishing he were dead. Still, that left the big question of what happened to Bill?

Between reading dozens of minds all focused on serving drinks or being drinks (I had to screen the "Willing Donors" as well) and worrying about the current locations of my exes, I was worn out by lunch time. Naturally that was precisely when Amelia called to let me know about her house-warming gift that had gotten a little too warm.

"I'm so sorry, Sookie!" Amelia told me for the seventeenth time. "But I got it out really quick and it's just the one side of the house that looks a little charred. I'll call dad and I'm sure he can send someone out to touch up the paint before tonight."

"I can't believe you almost burned down our house! We haven't even moved in yet!" I yelled into the phone.

"I know, I know. I'm so sorry! Look, let me call dad and see if he can get someone out. I'll finish up the spell –"

"What? No! Amelia, honey, I know you mean well, but just let it go. If you really want to do this for us, please just wait until tomorrow. I really can't take any more stress over tonight." I was getting past my anger and heading straight to exasperated.

"Oh, Sookie, I know how stressed you are. I'm really sorry. I promise I'll get it fixed."

"Call Mr. Carmichael and see what he can do about it, but please just leave the spell for later." I was almost begging.

"Okay, Sook. I will. I'm so sorry."

I figured twenty apologies was all I could take, so I left the disaster in her questionable hands. Amelia was one heck of a powerful witch, but she seemed to get ahead of herself way too often. I thought she might have learned her lesson from the Bob-cat experience and her subsequent punishment from her coven, but apparently not. The anxiety from that phone call was enough to make me skip lunch and head straight for the next disaster: the cleaners.

I had taken Eric's tuxedo in two weeks earlier, as soon as Mr. Carmichael told us the house was finally ready. They were expecting it already, since Eric always hosted a special event at Fangtasia for Halloween. But today, it was no where to be found. After two hours of search and shouting, I headed over to the only tuxedo shop in Shreveport, but they didn't have anything close to Eric's standards or size.

There was a costume shop next door, the kind that pops up in September and disappears come November, but I figured that was worth a shot. The customers were mostly fangbangers excited by the selection of leather and latex, but there were more authentic items near the back. Unfortunately, they also didn't have a tux that would work, but they did have a barbaric leather belt with an elaborate braided metal buckle and bronze tassels. It screamed over the top, so of course I got it. I didn't think Eric would find it an adequate replacement for his best suit, but the thought of him trying it on without a suit underneath was enough to perk my mood up a little.

Before heading back to Eric's house, I went by our house to check that everything was in order. The guards were in place and the decorators from E(E)E were on the scene. Amelia had already left and, thankfully, the house was still mostly in tact. In fact, Mr. Carmichael had already sent a crew over and they had almost finished covering the scorch marks by the time I got up the nerve to walk around the house. Well, at least that was something.

I went over the guest list with the gate attendants one last time before driving back to Eric's house. It was still an hour before sundown, so I busied myself rummaging through Eric's closet for another tuxedo. Nothing. I was starting to get myself into a real panic when the doorbell rang.

It was Michael Morrison, Eric's new day man, and to me he looked like an angel sent from heaven. Or, more accurately, from the cleaners, because he was holding Eric's tux. I was so relieved I actually started crying, which, of course, made Michael three shades of uncomfortable.

"How did you find it?" I asked.

"The cleaners called a little after you left. I guess they put it under 'Stackhouse' instead of 'Northman'."

"Michael, you're a life saver!" I gave him a hug, grabbed the tux and disappeared back into the house. I hung the tux on the closet door and pulled out my dress. It was the palest blue, almost white, and made of a satin chiffon material that Eric was partial to, on me at least. The front had a deep V neck, and the back was so deep that the V ended just at my waist. The dress sparkled in the dim light of the room.

Figuring we could shower together when the sun set, I climbed into bed with my dead Viking and suddenly my anxiety was gone. I slipped under his arm and waited for the bond between us to spark back to life when he rose for the evening. As expected, a feeling of absolute happiness swept over me as he woke. I could feel through the bond his pleasure at having me beside him, and as he pulled me in closer I felt his pleasure down lower, too.

Ever since we had renewed our bond, it was a hundred times stronger than it ever had been. During the day, I was always aware of Eric, but when he was awake it was like he was sharing part of my mind. Not that I could hear him that way (except for the occasional glitch that scared me senseless), but he was constantly on my mind and I was sharing his moods through the bond as if they were coming from me.

"Is everything in order for this evening?" Eric asked while his hands started caressing me from shoulder to hip. Did I mention that we also seemed to have an insatiable (Word of the Day – Erotica Edition) appetite for each other, too?

"Yep," I answered, turning around to face him. "No members of the Fellowship of the Sun tried to sneak onto the staff and Michael managed to track down your tuxedo after the cleaners misplaced it. Also, Amelia almost burned down our house, but Mr. Carmichael sent over a paint crew to restore it."

I felt Eric's amusement at the last part, but he continued along his train of thought reaching his hands down lower.

"How long until the reception?" he breathed before leaning in to kiss me.

"Two hours," I said, a little breathless, reaching down to massage him, too. "But I think everyone usually shows up late to these things." We didn't say much else for the next hour.

Luckily I'd washed my hair in the morning, so it didn't take too long to get dressed. My anxiety had kept me from eating all day, so my dress fit great and from Eric's lingering stare when he saw me and the lust emanating from him through the bond, I figured it must look great, too. Eric walked over to me, staring down the length of my dress and back up to meet my eyes.

"There's something missing," he said.

"Yeah, here and even more in the back," I replied, moving my hand to point out the deep drop in the front of the dress.

Eric placed his hands on my hips, then slowly brushed them up over my breasts and then up around my neck. He leaned in to kiss me and when he pulled back I felt the weight of a chain around my neck. I looked down to see a stunning sapphire sitting between two smaller diamonds.

"Eric," I started to say something, but I wasn't sure what, so I stopped.

"We need something to keep everyone's eyes off your perfect breasts in that dress," he said lightly, but I could feel his satisfaction that he'd rendered me speechless with the gift. Eric placed my shaw over my shoulders, giving them a gentle massage.

As soon as we were in his Corvette, my anxiety came back in full force. Eric gave me a reassuring smile and kissed my cheek. "Don't worry, you're beautiful," he said. Beautiful or not, parading around as the most famous Vampire-Human couple in the country was akin to putting a big red and white bullseye target on my head. Seeing as how I already seemed to attract danger like moths to a flame, this was down right suicidal.

Eric had agreed to marry me when I asked (I know, I know, I should have let him ask, but he'd already vampire-married me and that seemed to be enough for him) because he knew it was something I wanted. But it also served his political agenda well, since it made us the spokes couple for Vampire rights. Eric was now receiving large donations from the general fund and various organizations that wanted to legalize Vampire-Human marriages, and a vote was coming up in the Louisiana state senate in a few weeks to do just that.

All of that was well and good, but there's always a catch and, for us, this was the Fellowship of the Sun who decided to make us the targets of all kinds of attacks that probably had Gran turning over in her grave. They were just down right crude. Not to mention that they'd become increasingly militant over the past few years, even going so far as to blow up the last regional summit in Rhodes. As if that wasn't enough, there were also the vampires who thought no human ranked high enough to be married to any vampire, let alone a King, and regarded me about at the level of something icky stuck on the bottom of their shoes. All in all, I thought I had pretty good reason to be worried about tonight.

When we got out of the car, Eric pulled me into one of his signature breath-taking, can't-remember-my-own-name kisses before we made our grand entrance. The main living area of the house was fairly well packed with people, with a band set up next to the fireplace. The back doors were opened to allow access to the deck and provide a bit more space. The wait staff was running around serving drinks wearing the usual black slacks and long sleeve white shirt, so I was the only human suffering from the chill October breeze that was sweeping in. Eric absent-mindedly rubbed his hands up and down my back, which only made me shiver more, though for a completely different reason.

Most of the vampires I had seen before. The first to come greet us were Russell Edgington, the King of Mississippi, and his husband Bartlett Crowe, the King of Indiana. Eric had performed their marriage ceremony at the summit in Rhodes, and the two newlyweds were still smoldering at each other.

"Miss Stackhouse," Russell said as he made his way up to us, "Or I suppose it's Mrs. Northman now. You are looking more radiant than ever, and I must say, my dear, your tastes are constantly improving." He gave Eric a lusty smile as he inclined his head towards me. Turning his full focus to Eric, he continued, "Congratulations, Your Majesty. Your latest exploits have indeed been impressive. I hope our joint endeavors are equally profitable." I wasn't sure if Russell was counting me as one of Eric's exploits, but I decided to let it go. I'd always gotten on well with the King of Mississippi, and I didn't see any need to change that just now.

Eric nodded to him. "I have no doubt they will be."

We were greeted by the Queen of Arkansas, who to me looked a bit strained, but maybe she wasn't having as easy of a time running her newly acquired state as Eric. The King of Kentucky also made an appearance, but he seemed to leave immediately after he paid his respects. I got the sense he was a little paranoid about safety.

The next couple to greet us I had met in New Orleans when I went down to clean out Hadley's apartment. Genevieve Thrash was a very dignified woman who I thought outclassed her husband, David, the Lt. Governor of Louisiana. Both were werewolves who had been in constant negotiations with Eric since he became King.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty," said the Lt. Governor.

Eric nodded. "I hope that our marriage will soon be recognized by your government."

"Having a prominent spokes-couple such as yourselves will no doubt help to persuade the senate, I am sure." I can't read Were minds as well as humans, but I could read enough to know he was sincere. The Lt. Governor hoped that if he could convince the state senate to legalize vampire—human marriages, that it would open the door to more rights for the Weres as well. I hoped he was right.

While he and Eric talked politics of marriage, Genevieve leaned over towards me. "I never had the chance to thank you, Mrs. Northman, for your thoughtfulness in New Orleans. I trust this event will be less, ah, exciting?" At the party for Sophie-Anne and her husband Peter in New Orleans, I had warned Genevieve that the party was about to get bloody in time for her and her husband to make a graceful exit before Eric and the rest of the vamps sent heads rolling.

"Please, call me Sookie," I said, "and you're certainly welcome. We don't have quite that much entertainment planned this evening, but I hope you and the Lt. Governor enjoy yourselves." She smiled back at me as the two headed for the bar.

Eric firmed up his grip on my arm when the next royalty made his way to us.

"Mr. Northman," Felipe nodded towards Eric. Felipe de Castro, the King of Nevada, was also the King of Louisiana and Arkansas before the coup. Victor Madden, Felipe's envoy of sorts for Louisiana, had orchestrated the take over and seen it through only to be overthrown himself by Eric before he could be crowned King. Eric had told me that he paid Felipe a large sum of money after the take over, but I doubted if that really made Felipe fine with the loss of his expanded domain.

"Mr. de Castro," Eric returned the nod along with the emphasis on the lack of title. Yep, definitely some tension here. I tried to push my calm through the bond to get Eric to relax, but it wasn't working.

"And Miss Stackhouse," Felipe didn't take his eyes off of Eric as he addressed me. "I do regret the loss of you almost as much as Louisiana. Though perhaps your Viking would be willing to offer your services from time to time." From his tone and partially extended fangs, it was clear he wasn't just after a mind reader. Now it was Eric's turn to try to keep me calm.

"Actually, it's Mrs. Northman now," I said to him causing my Viking to grip my arm a little harder.

"Felipe," Eric said, "you are welcome to contact my second should you need my assistance managing your kingdom." Felipe's smug expression faltered momentarily before he turned to leave, his cape swinging around behind him.

"Well this is sure fun," I complained.

"Dance with me," Eric said, not quite asking. I could feel that his desire to be alone with me was almost as strong as mine after our banter with de Castro.

We walked out to the middle of the room and everyone else fell back to give us space. Eric took me in his arms and we began floating around the room to the music. After the first dance, more couples started joining us on the floor, and after the third my feet were in favor of sitting the next one out.

Once we were apart, more people started lining up to talk with the Viking King of Louisiana, and I was glad to be sitting the politics out for a bit, too. Amelia spotted me then and came rushing over.

"Sookie, you look amazing!" She said, giving me a big hug. "I'm so sorry about the accident earlier."

"Don't worry about it. It looks like your dad got everything sorted out."

"Yeah, he's really sorry he couldn't make it tonight," she said. I could hear in her thoughts that he wasn't sorry at all that an emergency had come up. As much as Mr. Carmichael liked having the business with the top vamps in Louisiana, he sure wasn't fond of having to hang out with them.

Amelia and I caught up a little on the events of the day. "So, how's Pam?" I asked.

"Good. She's got a new friend," I could practically hear the quotation marks in her voice, "so we haven't seen each other too much. To be honest, though, I'm kind of glad. There's been a lot going on with the witches now that my probation is over, and it's kept me pretty busy." I couldn't help but read in her thoughts that the time apart was easing tensions with the witches in her cover. As a rule, witches aren't fans of the fang.

I saw the opening in her comment and took it. "About that, I really appreciate you wanting to help me and Eric out, but the basic wards you had on my house would be great. More than enough. I don't want you to put yourself out." Or blow up my new house, I added to myself.

"Don't worry, Sook," she said. "It's all done now. I figured it was the least I could do for you." I could see that Amelia was feeling guilty for having left me the day before I was attacked and Gran's house was burned down. She thought that if she had stayed a little longer, she could have done something to stop it.

Just went I was about to say something about it not being her fault, Amelia's thoughts went from lingering guilt to eager lust. I looked up to see Alcide Herveaux coming over to us.

"Sookie," he said, pulling me into a warm hug. He was definitely growing in to his role as the Shreveport pack leader. He radiated power. I'd always had a strong attraction to Alcide, but we'd never quite made it to couple status. That was probably the only reason I was able to keep my thoughts in check while he was holding me. That, and the wave of jealousy I was feeling coming through my blood bond. I pulled back from him before Eric's temper could rise.

"Alcide," I said, "I'm so glad you could make it."

"I didn't have much of a choice," he said in a husky voice. "But it's good to see you, anyway." I noticed for the first time that the strain of being pack leader was making its way into his eyes.

Amelia was screaming in my head for an introduction. "Alcide, this is Amelia." He nodded in recognition. Amelia had dated Trey Dawson, a member of Alcide's pack, until he died in the Fae War. Amelia was flirting with Alcide, who seemed pretty happy to reciprocate, when I noticed Russell approaching the bar for another True Blood. I excused myself, though the two hardly noticed, and walked over to him.

"Your Majesty," I said, "I was wondering if I could ask you a question."

"Of course, my dear." Russell replied, curious.

I thought about my phrasing before I spoke. "Have you seen Bill Compton recently?" I asked.

Russell's face broke into a smile. "Is he missing again?" Russell asked, clearly amused. "He does seem to be difficult to keep track of. But, no, I do not know where he is." For some reason, I believed him. It had been a long shot, but since the last time Bill went missing he'd ended up being tortured in Russell's barn for several days, I had felt compelled to ask.

"How are you enjoying married life?" I asked, feeling a need to lighten the topic.

"It is most rewarding, as I am sure you'll agree," Russell said. He looked over towards Eric and his fangs slid out a little. "Tell me, my dear, does he really satisfy his hunger with only you?" I didn't think Russell was just talking about blood, but either way the question would have had my Gran smacking the rudeness from his face. Luckily, I'd learned enough about vampires, and vampire royalty, to keep my hands by my side.

"Eric and I are quite happy, as well," I replied with a smile.

Russell made a longing sigh. "Perhaps in ninety-nine years when I am eligible once more . . ." He went back over to Indiana with two bottles of True Blood.

That comment had sure knocked me off my perch. Vampire marriages, at least the ones between two vampires, were suppose to be sacred for one hundred years. I suppose 'until death do we part' was a bit too much commitment for the undead. Now here Russell was talking about pursuing Eric once his marriage to Indiana was expired with no thought of little mortal me at all. I suppose he knew I'd be dust in the ground by then, but that reality didn't exactly comfort me. In fact, it had been bothering me more each day, though I did my best not to bring it up with Eric anymore. He'd made it clear that he wanted me for as long as I was around, and while I didn't doubt his sincerity when he said it, I wasn't sure he'd really feel the same when my skin started sagging like an elephant's knees.

Eric must have felt the sadness sweeping over me after my conversation with Russell, because he was standing next to me not a minute later with a questioning look on his face.

"He doesn't have Bill," I said, thinking of a way to deflect his question before the asked.

"Sookie, I've told you, I have people looking for him. You do not need to waste your time on this." Eric was irritated that I was so concerned about Bill's whereabouts. Before I could respond to remind his why I was concerned, the music stopped playing. We looked to the band and Bubba had walked up to the microphone.

"Miss Sookie. Mr. Eric," he said, inclining his head towards us. Then, without further preamble, the band started to play and the King closed his eyes. "Hold me close, hold me tight . . ."

Eric did, and we were the only ones on the dance floor while Bubba serenaded us with "I want you, I need you, I love you". As I listened to the words, if I hadn't known different, I would have sworn Bubba had written it just for us. All of my worries about tonight or Bill or Felipe or Russell disappeared. At the end of the song, Eric leaned in to kiss me and the world fell away. When it came back, Bubba was in the middle of "Love me tender", and I was thinking things really couldn't get any better than this.

Of course, that's exactly the moment the alarms went off.

The next thing I knew my ears were filled with the ringing of sirens and Eric was flying me to the center of the house where the stairwell to downstairs was located. "Stay here," he said before kissing me and running off.

Amelia came over to stand beside me, then we both ran over to the windows to see what was going on. Far out at the edge of the property I could see what looked like an enormous burning cross. Oh goody, the Fellowship of the Sun decided to crash in after all. A few of the more fanatical members charged forward with burning torches, but as soon as they crossed onto our land their torches went out and I couldn't see.

"What's going on?" I asked no one in particular.

Alcide had just come back in. "The Fellowship decided to make an appearance. They're trying to burn a cross in the yard, but the idiots can't seem to get the fire started." Alcide seemed calm, almost amused, so I relaxed a little. Then I heard Amelia bursting with pride beside me.

"The wards?" I asked, stunned.

"That's what I was working on today. No one can bring fire across your land or start one on it. The only exception is the fire place in the living room and the stove. Anything else goes out or won't get started."

I was so happy I kissed her right on the lips. "You're the best witch I know!"

"Happy house warming," she smiled back, oozing with pride and a twinge of lust. Oops. Maybe I shouldn't have kissed her.

"Between the guard dogs and the witchcraft, you seem to have an impenetrable fortress," Russell commented, a little envious. The vampires were back now that the situation seemed under control. Alcide stiffened his posture next to me, clearly taking exception to the guard dog comment.

"Yes," Felipe agreed. "The Viking has acquired an extraordinary assortment of talents. Perhaps I should not have let Louisiana go quite so easily." He stared at Amelia and me as he spoke, and I could see scheming behind his black eyes.

Fortunately Eric returned then. "Alcide, your pack has rounded up the trespassers. Please see that they are held until the police arrive." Alcide glared at him, grunted and left. "Your Majesties," Eric said addressing Russell, Bart and Felipe together. Russell and Bart made to leave, but Felipe hesitated before going. Eric's bloodlust was rising and bringing other things up with it. He pulled me into a deep kiss and moaned in protest when I broke away so that we could get back to our guests.

The party resumed while the protestors were rounded up, just to make the point that they hadn't disrupted anything. Eventually, the guests started to leave and soon Eric was giving final orders to Rasul in the driveway.

I heard to front door close and almost at the same time Eric swept me up into his arms and, in a very Rhett moment, carried me down the stairs to our bedroom. A moment after he set me on the bed, Eric's clothes were on the floor and he was sliding my dress down over my shoulders.

"Does this mean we can move in now?" I asked Eric once his mouth moved off of mine and wandered down my body.

"Yes," he said between kisses. "But you'll have to invite me in." His fingers were probing inside me while his tongue danced around them.

"Come in," I said. "Oh God! Please, come in." His mouth moved back up to mine so I could taste myself on his lips. Then he came in and we spent the last three hours before dawn christening every room in our new home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

When I woke up, it just past noon. I suppose I shouldn't have been too surprised, since I'd stayed awake until dawn, but it worried me when I started slipping into Eric's sleeping patterns. I'm not a vampire, don't want to be a vampire, and, according to my cousin Claude, can't be made a vampire. Those were three pretty good reasons to keep normal human hours. Still, there was a very large, very dead and very naked reason to keep vampire hours wrapped around me. I felt the soft buzz of our blood bond get slightly fainter as I extricated myself from our intertwined limbs and went to the kitchen to get caffeinated.

I stared at the beautiful stainless steel machine that Pam had gotten for us (or rather, for me) as a wedding gift. She had asked Amelia what I liked, and Amelia told her Eric and coffee. Since I already had the one, she decided to get me the other. The machine was huge and looked very complicated, ironically not the sort of thing you want to try to operate before the first cup of coffee. So, feeling a little guilty, I dug the pot I'd brought from Eric's house out of a box and plugged it in.

We hadn't been planning on staying in our new house last night, so the only thing nonalcoholic in the kitchen apart from True Blood was coffee. While I had been in complete agreement with Eric last night that we shouldn't waste the 15 minute drive back to his house, I was starting to think that my libido didn't have my stomach's best interests at heart.

After my first cup of easy-to-make drip coffee, I realized that last night should have me pretty concerned for a few reasons. The most obvious was the Fellowship of the Sun. Even though Amelia's new and improved wards were nothing short of brilliant, the fact that the Fellowship knew exactly when our reception was being held meant someone had insider information. Then there was Felipe de Castro who clearly wanted a piece of Eric's pie, most likely the piece the included me.

Then there was Eric. He and I had been together for a while now, and even though I'm no expert on relationships, it seemed like our need to be together physically should be getting less not greater. But here we were, barely able to keep our hands off each other. It wasn't that I'd turned into a sex addict, though I'm pretty sure Eric could turn a nun into a sex addict if he had a mind to. I just felt so much better when Eric and I were together, and the closer we were the better I felt. Sure I was still able to function during those few hours a night when we were both awake and in separate places, but I was definitely distracted. That was the real reason I didn't want to slip into a vampire sleep schedule. The only times when I felt like it was just me were the times when he was dead to the world, and I was deathly afraid of losing that feeling.

Instead of the worrying about everything, I decided I'd rather start being productive. I took a quick shower and after pouring my second cup of coffee and called Michael. I let him know we were at our new house, so he could start the movers packing up Eric's whenever they were ready. With that done, I called up Amelia to see if she wanted to have a late lunch.

"You could really see how much he cares about you," Amelia said between bites. "He can't seem to keep his hands off of you when you're in arms reach."

"That goes both ways," I said. "Actually, it's getting a little scary. Every since we used your potion and re-established the bond, we can't stand to be apart. Even right now I keep thinking about him back at the house, and he's dead for the day. I keep thinking this will wear off soon, but if anything it's getting more intense."

"I doubt it had anything to do with my magic, Sookie." Amelia always picked up on my unspoken questions. "The only thing that did was severe the connection. This has everything to do with the blood bond. Have you talked to Eric about it?"

"No, not yet, but I guess I really need to. I'm suppose to work at Fangtasia tonight, and so far every time we've both been there we spend half the night making goo-goo eyes at each other and the other half making out in his office."

"That can't be good for business," Amelia said, but she couldn't hide the smile in her voice any more than the one spreading on her face.

"Pam was getting annoyed with us the other day, but she said it did boost turnout for the late night crowd." I blushed deep red, remembering Pam's words and her suggestion that we put a webcam in Eric's office for an added revenue stream.

"Hey, speaking of Pam, did she tell you about Jamie?" Amelia's tone was good at hiding her hurt and resentment, but her mental voice was too loud for me to block out.

"No. Did she finally do it? What's he like?" Pam had mentioned to me that she wanted to have a child, vampire style, now that she was more or less on her own in New Orleans. I often wondered what would make a vampire want to sire another one. Bill had told me he would never do that to someone, maybe not even if they'd asked, but Pam regarded her death at Eric's fangs as the greatest moment in her existence. She loved every part of being a vampire, so I could see how she might want to spread the love. I just hoped whoever she picked shared that feeling.

"Not he. She," Amelia said. Her jealously was coming through in images now. I put down my fork. New vampires were big on the blood and lust, and from the glimpses I couldn't quite block, I was seeing quite clearly how well those two went together. Yuck. "They're even worse than you and Eric, no offense" she added hastily and halfheartedly.

That's when I saw it. Amelia really did have feelings for Pam. I'd thought that they were just rekindling their old fling, which seemed nothing more than that at the time. But I could see now that Amelia was really hurting that Pam had someone all consuming in her life, and that it didn't leave any time for anyone else. I hoped that wasn't what I was like with Eric, though I knew that was where we were headed. Well, time for a sharp right turn, I told myself.

"It's like that with new vampires," I said, trying to console her a little. "But it'll wear off eventually." That tactic wasn't working so I tried another. "You and Alcide sure hit it off last night."

"You never told me he was that gorgeous! Hubba hubba." Yep, that worked.

"He's suppose to come over to Fangtasia tomorrow evening for a meeting with Eric and the mayor. You said you were coming by before you went back home, right?"

"I think I can take a few extra days of vacation," she said, mentally trying on the outfits she brought.

"Come on," I said, "Let's head over to the mall in Monroe." We spent the next two hours shopping for that perfect outfit to toe the line between sex-goddess and slut.

I swung by Eric's house on the way back into town to get clean clothes for him for when he rose. The movers already had most of the house packed up since I'd called Michael earlier to let him know to go ahead since Eric wasn't there. I was able to find a box with t-shirts and jeans, so I grabbed a couple of options for him and then swung by the grocery store.

Between waking up late and my impromptu shopping trip with Amelia, it was close to sunset when I got back home. It felt weird walking into the house, our house, for the first time. I'd come in before, sure, but it hadn't really been ours yet then. Now it already felt a little like home. I felt out through the bond to find Eric still down for the day, so I put the groceries away and started making dinner for myself.

I was stirring the cream sauce for my country-fried stake when my pulse picked up and a feeling of warmth started spreading from deep inside. The sun was setting. Not a minute later, my Viking was upstairs picking me up from behind and kissing my neck. He hadn't bothered with clothes. Hubba hubba indeed.

"I'm just fixing dinner," I said as he put me back down, but standing behind me so I knew he was there and very ready for action.

"Mmmm, and you smell delicious," he whispered into my ear, licking my lobe as he pulled his mouth away.

"Dinner for me." I turned the burners off knowing I'd soon forget all about my home cooked meal.

"I recall my first wife used to serve me dinner first," he said. That comment was enough to restore my self-control. I knew Eric had been married when he was human and that his wife had died. I suppose that was better than having his ex running around, especially with my tendency to kill my boyfriends' exes, but somehow the reminder of a past love didn't sit too well with me.

"Eric, we need to talk about something," I said to him. He felt my seriousness and pulled back from me a little. Of course, then I could see exactly what I was missing out on by derailing his mood, and my resolve started to falter. "Can you put on some pants? I picked some things up from the house for you."

"You want me to get dressed?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. I could see why he was puzzled. I almost never wanted that.

"Please? While I eat."

He was back and wearing a pair of jeans and a Fangtasia t-shirt by the time I'd put my dinner on a plate. I still felt a bit rude whenever I ate in front of Eric. It wasn't that I thought the idea of food disgusted him like it had done Bill, but my Gran had raised me proper, so I popped a True Blood in the microwave. Eric made a face, but accepted it and sat with me.

"What has you concerned this time, lover?" he asked when I was down to just picking at my dinner instead of eating it.

I was completely impressed that all I felt from Eric was concern for me. We must have had a dozen talks that started this way where I worried about how our relationship would undermine his position as King or how we couldn't stay together as I got older or some other reason I thought up for why we couldn't just be happy together. And every time, he listened and then told me why it wasn't a problem. He didn't coddle me or give me silly assurances that our love concerned all. That wasn't Eric. He was practical to a fault. He told me exactly why our association meant he was even stronger in his position and why staying together as I aged only made him more aware of how precious our time together was and he didn't want to waste it talking about why we should break up.

"The bond," I said, "it's getting stronger."

He wasn't surprised. He must have known this was coming, because sure as the sun had set he was feeling it just as strong as me.

"Yes."

"Well," I said, "it's getting to the point where I can't stand to be away from you. Sometimes, even when you're sleeping, I find myself coming back to lie beside you or just be in the house with you." I felt his rush of happiness when I said it, but tried to keep going. "Will it start fading? I mean, if we stop . . ."

"You want to stop feeding from one other, to see if that weakens the bond?" he asked.

I nodded. It's true that we didn't swap blood every time we had sex, and we didn't swap much when we did, but each time made the bond a little more intense.

"You like this feeling," he said. "You enjoy being tied like this. Why do you want to lessen it?" He was leaning towards me now, with his hands around my waist to scoot me closer to him. The physical contact called my hormones to attention.

"I'm scared, I guess."

"What scares you?"

"I guess, I'm scared of how it'll feel, you know, if we aren't . . . if I can't be with you anymore." Finally I'd hit a nerve.

"We aren't discussing this again," he said. "You will not leave me." There's confident. Then there's cocky. Then there's Eric. But he was right. "And I will not leave you. If the bond is too distracting, then I will forgo feeding from you, for a while. I do not require much blood." He pulled me even closer and began unfastening my pants. "But I will not forgo being inside you." He kissed me before lifting my shirt over my head.

"I'd never ask you for chastity," I said, pulling his shirt up, too, though even sitting he was too tall for me to get it over his head without help.

"It is not just sex," he said. "I have had countless women, but few have been more than a meal and a fuck." By now we were both completely undressed, sitting in chairs facing one another at the kitchen table. "I am happy with you. I am happiest inside you, touching you, pleasing you. This is something rare, and I will not give it up."

"I know," I said, "I feel that way, too, with the bond–"

"No," he cut me off placing one hand across my mouth and with the other lifting me over onto his lap. "I felt this way before the bond. I didn't know who I was or who you were, but I knew I was happy with you. I'm sorry it took me so long to remember." I could feel his regret, and it was the first time I'd ever felt that emotion from him. As a rule, Eric had no regrets.

I had no idea what to say to that, so I kissed him. He pulled me closer so we were pressed up against each other. I moved my hands to his thighs so I could push myself up and he guided himself inside me. He moaned as I slid down his length.

"This is best," he said. "This is perfect." His hands rubbed against my back as I rode him. He moaned something in his native tongue before leaning forward so that I fell back enough for him to latch his mouth onto my breast. I felt his fangs scraping against me, but he didn't break the skin. "Eric," I said, stopping myself just before I begged him to bite.

My legs wrapped around his waist and my lips locked to his as he stood up. He thrust into me even as he carried me down to the bedroom. We landed on the bed together. "You are perfect," he said, pushing all the way through me. "Perfect." He fangs glistened above me as we came together in a rush of pleasure, but he still didn't bite. He lay on top of me, sated and content, running his hands gently across any part of my body he wasn't covering with his own.

After a little while, he licked my unpunctured neck and moved to get up. I wrapped my legs tighter around him, not ready to be apart just yet. He responded instantly by pushing in to me. I gasped at the shock of it. If I hadn't seen the shivers running through his magnificent body, I'd swear he hadn't actually come. He was hard inside me again, or maybe still. He rolled us over so that I was on top, and I brought us to another magnificent release. Afterwards, to be safe, I climbed off of him to lie at his side.

"Will this ever get old?" I asked in a whisper.

"Not with you," he said. "I never stop wanting you." He rolled towards me to kiss me, and I could see he was ready again. It sent a shiver through my body, though maybe that was just another aftershock. "But we have to go."

I watched him getting dressed with lust in my eyes, and he smirked back at me with a cocky leer. I dragged myself out of bed and tried my best to tame my hair. In the end, it had to be pulled back into a tight pony tail. I pulled on a pair of khaki slacks and a read boatneck sweater. I didn't think my purchases with Amelia would help us get out of the house, so they'd have to wait for another night. We drove over to Fangtasia together in Eric's corvette.

When I moved in with Eric, he tried in earnest to get me to quit my job at Merlotte's. He had a lot of good arguments as to why that made sense, but from the bond and a fleeting reading of his mind, I could tell the real reason was that he didn't like me being so far away from him. The compromise we eventually reached was that I'd work for Sam three shifts a week, and only one of those at night, and work at Fangtasia for Eric three nights a week.

My main job at Fangtasia was to screen the crowd and be on alert for any Fellowship members, but I also sat with Eric through meetings with local government officials or any other meeting where non-vamps were present. I generally sat out of meetings with other vamps, not only because I couldn't be any help, but I didn't really want to know all the inner workings of the vampire world. Eric made sure I knew what was necessary, and that was more than enough for me.

Another perk to working at Fangtasia, apart from more time with my Viking, was that I was able to be on their employee health plan. Even though Eric and I were married in the eyes of humans and vamps, the great state of Louisiana didn't quite see it that way. Not yet, anyway. So the only way for Eric to put me on the insurance plan was for him to put me on the payroll. When I first complained that he was giving me too large a salary, Eric responded that by having me on the insurance plan he was saving a fortune given my tendency to get injured. I smacked him for it and nearly broke my hand.

When we arrived, Rasul was waiting at the back door. After a polite how-dee-do to me, he started briefing Eric on the way back to his office while I made my way to the bar. Indira was working tonight, and while she didn't openly dislike me, I didn't think she would be joining my fan club any time soon. She poured me an iced tea and I let my mind wander through the patrons'. Sex, sex, blood, sex. The usual.

"Don't you look good enough to eat," said a voice beside me.

"Shame I'm not on the menu," I said without bothering to look at who it was. I could tell from his mental signature, or lack there of, that he was a vampire. He must be new to the area, and Gran would have chided me for not being more friendly, but I wasn't getting a friendly vibe from this one as he tried his glamour on me right away.

"Lucky thing I don't give a fuck," he said and grabbed my arm, pulling me off the stool. Why did they always feel the need to manhandle me?

I looked up to see a huge vampire, at least 6 feet tall and possibly that big around, staring down at me, his fangs halfway out. Before I could come up with a pithy retort or just scream for help, he started pulling me towards the door. In the next second, I felt my arm being pulled almost out of the socket as we went crashing to the ground. Rasul was crouched above us, with his hand around the Hungry Hippo's throat and fangs fully extended.

"Release her," he said, his tone sending shivers down my spine. "Now."

The blood started flowing to my hand again and I rolled away from my attacker. Indira was there and helped me to my feet. Suddenly I was very aware of the three bloody-lusty vampires surrounding me, all excited for a fight. Good thing I had health insurance.

"Relax," said Hungry, "I didn't know she was yours."

"She belongs to the King," Rasul said.

While I went red enough to match my sweater, Hungry went white enough to match his fangs, which were suddenly pulled back in. Though he was clearly fearful, he still looked pissed. Here was yet another vamp who wouldn't be signing up for the Sookie fan club.

"Then I apologize to his majesty for my ignorance," he said.

I opened my mouth to respond to that one, but before I got the chance Rasul said, "You will apologize to her as well." As soon as Rasul said it, I realized that this would be one of those times to just let it go. Hungry was looking daggers at Rasul and his fangs made a second appearance.

"She's human. I won't apologize to his pet." I saw Rasul's knuckles go whiter as Hungry's face went redder.

"You will," he said. "Now."

Hungry was thinking about it, probably weighing his chances to overpower both Rasul and Indira. He must have decided his pride wasn't heavy enough to balance the risk. "My apologies, Miss," he said without taking his eyes off Rasul. I was glad for that.

Rasul released him and stood up, positioning himself between me and Hungry. "Wait outside. You will be summoned when the King is ready for you." After he left, Rasul turned to me, fangs still out and a hunger in his eyes. "He's right," he said to me, "you do cause a lot of trouble." He sounded positively gleeful at the statement. Rasul bowed his head to me and then disappear into the back, Indira returned to her post behind the bar looking less than gleeful though not particularly unhappy, and I just slumped back into my seat at the bar.

I jumped a few minutes later when Heidi appeared beside me.

"Sorry to startle you," she said.

"No. It's okay. There was just an incident a little bit ago," I said, shaking off the fright. "Have you found anything out?" I asked, anxious now for a different reason. Heidi had been trying to track Bill.

"No. The trail is a dead end and there is no one around who has had his blood," she said. I'd had Bill's blood, but my bond with Eric had removed the connection.

"What about Selah? The lawyer he was seeing a bit ago?" I asked, fingers crossed.

"We checked. She never drank from him." So just me then.

"What about Pavel? Bill told me he'd give him blood sometimes when he came over to fill orders for the database when Bill was still sick. I know vamps can track humans who have their blood, so can't Pavel track Bill from that?"

"Pavel has the flu," Heidi said.

"What flu? Vampires can't get sick."

"I didn't think so, but apparently we can. Pavel fell sick three months ago and hasn't recovered. I've heard there are vampires who've been sick for a year. There doesn't seem to be a cure. Even the blood of the maker has no affect. They just whither away."

"Heidi, that's awful. Does anyone know what causes it?"

Heidi was about to respond when her mouth suddenly closed and she abruptly left. The happy feeling deep inside me told me the reason was a tall, blonde Viking standing behind me.

"Rasul tells me there was a disturbance. Were you injured?" Eric knew the answer. He could feel how I felt through the bond. Still, it was nice of him to ask.

"I'm fine. How's work?" I turned to face him. I didn't need to see his fangs or the bulge in his pants to know what he was thinking. I figured getting answers about the vampire flu could wait.

"Tedious," he said. "Come back with me." He reached a hand out to take mine and led me back to his office.

As soon as we were inside, he closed the door and pressed me up against the wall, kissing and sucking every millimeter of my neck. "Hungry?" I asked.

He answered with a ravenous moan but pulled away. "I need you to sit in on a meeting," he said.

"Human, witch or were?"

"Were and vampire," he said. "They have a dispute over a blood offense and I need to know who is in the right."

"A werewolf agreed to listen to the verdict of a vampire?" I asked with a whole heap of skepticism.

"Alcide passed the case on to me. The Were will abide my decision."

"I can only read one side."

"That will probably be enough. Do you mind?" Eric was leaning back into me and I could feel his desires stoking mine hotter.

"Of course not. That's why you pay me the big bucks, right? For my special skills." Okay, maybe I was stoking him a bit, too.

"Mmmm," he said, pressing his pelvis into me. "You can show me your many talents after this is done." With a last kiss, he pulled back. My knees were a bit wobbly, so I stayed against the wall while he went to the door and said something, to Rasul, I presume.

A werewolf with dark brown hair, a straight nose and strong jaw, not much taller than me came in. I vaguely recognized him from the last pack meeting I'd attended. It was only vague because I'd agreed to be the shaman that night which meant getting stoned on some bubbly drink and reading everyone's auras. Actually, it had been kinda fun, except for the getting sick afterwards and then having to deal with Eric's family crisis. But that was a whole other story.

The Were inclined his head to the side acknowledging Eric, and I could feel the resentment coming off of him in waves. He hated that Alcide had turned this over to a vampire, especially Eric. I couldn't see the root of it, but this guy had some serious issues with the vampire King of Louisiana. On the other hand, he had nothing but pleasant thoughts towards me. That was a nice change.

"Miss Stackhouse," he said, "I'm Peter Stanley." He reached out to shake my hand, holding it for longer than would normally be polite. I didn't complain because I knew what he was doing as well as he did. He was a member of the Long Tooth pack, Alcide's pack, and he knew what I was capable of. He was giving me all the information I needed in the most expedient way. And he was guilty as hell.

I read from him that the issue was surrounding Annabelle, Alcide's ex-girlfriend who had been messing around on the side with Alcide's now deceased second. Peter and Annabelle were an item of sorts, and a few night ago he noticed bite marks on her thigh. He found out who the offending vamp was and in a fit of passion went after him with a wooden stake. Unfortunately for Peter, a glamoured fangbanger got in the way and received a stake to the shoulder. Now the vampire, and can't you just guess who he is, was claiming a blood offense against Peter and wanted remuneration that amounted to twice Peter's life savings or, in the true spirit of vampire negotiations, Peter's life.

Peter silently asked me for help appealing to my status as a friend of the pack and a faint hint of something more. I sighed when he finally released my hand and took a seat in front of Eric's desk. Eric noticed our exchange but said nothing. He could feel my sadness and probably knew what it meant. He went around to his desk, pulling me along with him. I sat in the chair just behind his and we waited for Hungry.

He came in and took one look at me before his fangs dropped down. "This is no matter for a human," Hungry spat. "Tell your fangbanger pet to wait outside." Apparently he really was as smart as he looked.

Eric had him pinned to the wall with one hand around his neck and the other rammed into his stomach before he'd even finished the sentence. From the papers flying off the desk in his wake, Eric must have taken the most direct path straight over it and Peter, who I now noticed had been knocked a foot to the side. My fists clenched and stomach turned with rage that was far too terrifying to have come from me.

"If you ever disrespect my wife again," Eric said, his voice pure venom, "I will remove your intestines to wear as a belt. Is that clear?"

Hungry's face was contorted with fear and pain. He closed his eyes briefly, as if trying to answer.

"Is that clear?" Eric asked again.

"Yes," he said, in a voice so weak I could barely hear it.

"Yes, what?" Eric pressed his lower hand further into the vampires stomach.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I will not disrespect you or your wife ever again." Hungry's words came out slowly and with gasps in between.

Eric pulled back from him, and the vampire collapsed in a heap on the floor. Eric tossed something in the trash and then grabbed a t-shirt from the top of the cabinet beside him. As he wiped his hand with it, the shirt became soiled with blood.

"I do not allow my subjects to give me orders," Eric said. His voice was calmer but his anger still raged through the bond. "My ruling is in favor of the Were. He owes you nothing for the offense, and you will take no revenge. Be out of my area before sunrise or tomorrow my wife will wear your fangs as earrings."

Hungry crawled to the door, using the handle to pull himself up. He left a trail of blood behind him. Peter stood, facing Eric. "Thank you, Your Majesty," he said with a nod. Then we were alone in the room.

I felt Eric calming down and relaxed my fists. My stomach was turning over from the after effects of his violent emotions. I knew I was going to be sick, but I thought I could probably make it to the bathroom. When I got near the door I made the mistake of looking in the trash. Then I threw up all over Hungry's appendix.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Eric drove us home after I managed to calm down and told me to take the next night off. I was all too happy to agree. I needed a break from vampire drama, though I didn't need a break from him. Despite the serious gross factor, I appreciated his chivalry.

Over the next few days we settled in to our new house. The furniture from Eric's house was delivered over two nights (he didn't allow anyone in our house during the day) and the new sofa and bar stools we'd ordered arrived soon after. I spent my day off making the place homey by putting up pictures and placing silly nicknacks around. Though I don't think it was intentional on his part, Eric also made his presence known to the house with books and papers scattered about the living room and, of course, towels strewn about the bathroom floor.

Eric suggested that we use the same cleaning service he had for his house, but I told him I didn't feel right having other people pick up after me. After a couple of nights I realized that their main function would be picking up after Eric, and I was happy to call in the calvary for that.

Eric and I also settled into a routine of less blood swapping during sex. He still fed from me about every other night, but not much more, and I took a nip at him even less frequently. Though it was helping me keep my focus a little better at night when we were apart, I had to admit to myself that I really wasn't sure it was worth it. Don't ever let anyone tell you sex with vampires is just as good with the biting, cause believe you me they're lying. But sex with Eric was always great, so we were making due for now. Still, my resolve was definitely wavering.

I hadn't heard from Amelia if she'd made it over to Fangtasia to see Alcide, so I decided to call her and check in before working the lunch shift at Merlotte's.

"Hello?" she said. The noise in the background told me that she was in the car.

"Hey, Amelia. It's Sookie," I said.

"Oh, Sookie, hey. I was going to call you but I wasn't sure when you'd be getting up." She sounded put out.

"What's up?" I asked.

"I'm heading back to New Orleans."

"Now?"

"Yeah. I just got a call from Cynthia. Octavia missed a meeting last night, kind of a big deal one, and so she went over to her house this morning to check on her, but she wasn't there." Amelia wasn't put out, she was worried.

"I'm guessing they tried calling her and checking with Louis?"

"Sure. As soon as she didn't answer the door. But Louis is missing, too, and his house is all wrecked. They're saying it must have been a vampire attack because the silver necklace he always wears was on the floor and his crossbow was missing." I knew Louis wasn't a fan of the fang, but I had no idea he owned a cross bow. "The coven thinks Octavia must have gone after him."

"Oh, honey, I'm so sorry. Is there anything I can do?" I figured there wasn't, but a friend always asks.

"No. They've been trying to get a locater spell going, but no luck so far. I think maybe I can boost it, though, when I get there."

"I'm sure you'll be able to find her, Amelia. You're the best witch I know." It was a small comfort, but I didn't know what else to tell her.

"Sorry to leave so suddenly," she said.

"Sweetie, don't even think that. I completely understand. Just look after yourself, okay? And you call me if there's anything I can do. Or Eric."

"I will. Thanks, Sookie."

After a few more assurances from me and single syllable answers from her, I let her get back to focusing on the road. Even though she'd said there was nothing I could do, I called and left a message for Pam. If vampires were involved with whatever happened to Louis, Pam would know or be able to find out. Even if the witches didn't want help from vampires, I knew Amelia would want to do anything she could to find Octavia. This way it was me asking and not her, so maybe that would make it easier for the witches to accept. Really, I just needed to do something to feel useful, and that was the best I could come up with.

I went downstairs and kissed my dead vampire husband goodbye before heading to Merlotte's. Sam's general mood had picked up a little lately, which I gathered was due to him getting things more of less settled with the IRS. He was still a fair bit cooler towards me, which he had been since I told him I could only work part time, but at least he occasionally smiled again.

Jason and Hoyt came in for lunch around 1pm and sat in my section. "Hey brother," I greeted him with a warm smile. Jason and I had been getting along really well lately, and so I was genuinely happy to see him.

"Hey sis. Nice to see you in here again," he said.

I brought a basket of chicken wings and two cokes a little later, and Jason filled me in on Michele. "She says we need to grill out for you and Eric sometime soon," he said. Though I didn't think that inviting Eric along had been Michele's suggestion at all, I still appreciated the thought. "That'd be real nice, Jason. I'll give her a call soon and we can plan a date." And I can check if she really doesn't mind Eric coming.

A second after they left, Jason was back with a look that told me he needed something. "What's up?" I asked.

"You mind if I spend tomorrow night over at Gran's?" Jason was looking a little awkward asking, though I didn't know why.

"Sure. You hardly even have to ask." I still looked puzzled, but he seemed like he was going to explain so I just waited and let him.

"You know it's a full moon, right?"

No. I'd totally forgotten. "It's really no problem. The land's just sitting there so you go right ahead. Might be nice to have you checking on it anyway since I haven't made it over in a couple of weeks."

"Well, it wouldn't just be me." Oh. There it was. "Don't y'all normally stay in Hotshot?" Calvin was pretty strict about the panthers not running around anywhere else under a full moon.

"There's been some people hanging around lately, and, um, Calvin's been a bit edgy about it. I was thinking maybe it would be better if we were, uh, somewhere else for tonight, and I don't think Michele would want us all on my land. I figured since there isn't a house anymore . . . "

"Jason, y'all are welcome to the land." I was still pretty upset about the loss of Gran's house, too. "How come Calvin didn't ask me?"

"He doesn't want anything to do with vampires," Jason said. From the way he said it, I took "vampires" to mean "Eric". Most weres aren't too happy owing favors to vamps, and the dealings between Alcide and Eric lately weren't exactly helping.

"You tell Calvin that I said he's welcome to bring his pack onto my land, and that he doesn't owe me a thing in return." I said, emphasis on the me-ness of the statements.

"Thanks, Sook." He gave me a peck on the cheek and followed after Hoyt.

I finished up my shift and pulled into the drive before 5pm. I had an eerie feeling when I walked in the front door that someone other than Eric was in the house. Without thinking about it, cause really if I thought about it I'd have been back out the door and on the phone to someone, probably Michael, I crept downstairs to check on Eric.

"Dammit, Claude!" I screamed at the fairy in my bedroom peeking under the sheets at my Viking.

He sighed and let the sheet fall back down.

"Upstairs. Now."

"Cousin, you seem so tense," he said, following me to the kitchen.

"Gee, I wonder why?"

"I've had a record number of requests for another performance. Think he'd do another show?" In a night I'll not soon forget, Eric had given one hell of a show at Claude's club.

"Why are you here?"

"To spend quality time with you, Cousin. I've missed you." I can't read fairies's minds, but he actually sounded sincere at the last part.

"No. Eric will not be stripping at your club again," I said emphatically. "You want some tea?"

Claude told me a little about how his club was doing, and I was surprised that he really did seem to want to spend time with me. I figured while he was here and chatty, maybe he'd have some answers for me.

"I've been meaning to ask you something. After the night Amelia broke our blood bond," I paused, it was still physically painful to think about that night. "You said she shouldn't have. What did you mean exactly?"

"That the bond should not have been broken." I'd figured out a while ago that fairies were incapable of lying. They were, however, very capable of evading.

"Very helpful. Look, I just want to know what's up with the blood bond now. It's been really intense since Eric and I reestablished it, and if you know something about that then it'd sure be nice if you'd just tell me straight for once."

"The bond is stronger because you chose it," he said. Well, that was at least a little less evasive.

"Does the fact that I'm part fairy change anything?"

"It makes me like you more."

"About the bond, Claude."

Before he could answer or evade, the phone rang. Claude kissed my cheek before putting the phone next to my ear and making a hasty escape. I glared after him.

"Hello."

"Hi, Sookie?"

"Remy?" I hadn't heard from Hunter's father in months. Not since I'd told him it would be too dangerous for me to be around Hunter. I had written a few letters to Hunter since then, and he wrote me back every time. I knew it wasn't much, but it was the best I could do for him. I was pretty sure Remy was calling to ask me to stop, and I had no idea what I was going to say.

"I'm sorry to call out of the blue, especially after . . . but I don't know who else to call." So much for my theory.

"What's wrong? Is Hunter okay?"

"Sort of. A man came by to talk to me the other day, but Hunter told me not to let him in. He said he was a bad man and that he knew you. This man's also been talking to Hunter's teachers. He says he's from the FBI. His name's Lattesta."

Shit! Shit! Double shit! "Remy, don't talk to him. He knows about Hunter. You have to keep Hunter away from him."

"Sookie, if this man is really from the FBI . . ." Remy was terrified, I could hear it in his voice.

"I'll try to think of something, okay? I'm sure we can figure this out. Just keep a close eye on Hunter until we do. Is there somewhere you can go, maybe? Get away for a few days or something?"

"I could take him to my mom's, but I don't think either of them will be able to handle that for too long."

"Remy, I promise, I'll figure something out soon. Tell Hunter not to worry, okay?" And mean it, I thought to myself. If Remy sounded this bad on the phone, I could image how bad he must sound to telepathic Hunter. After a few more assurances, we hung up. It was only an hour before sunset, and I wasn't sure I'd be back before it, so I left Eric a note letting him know I'd meet him at Fangtasia. I quickly changed out of my uniform, then drove back to Merlotte's.

"What is it, Sookie?" Sam asked. As annoyed as he was that I'd chosen Eric's bar over his, Sam was still a good friend and he had exactly what I needed right now.

"Do you still have an empty rental?" I asked.

"Tired of Eric, already?" He said it like he was joking, but I could tell he was hopeful.

"Not hardly. I have some friends in trouble, family actually, and they need a place to stay for a little while."

"Of course, Sookie. The place is all cleared out. When do they need it and how long?"

"Soon but I'm not sure for how long."

Sam put his arm around me. "You don't have to explain it unless you want to, cher. The place is theirs as long as they need it."

I hugged him back, realizing for the first time how worried I really was. "Thanks, Sam." I felt suddenly a lot better, and it took me a good minute to realize it wasn't the hug. "I better get out of here before you decide you need another waitress for dinner," I said. I didn't want him to think I was rushing off just because the sun had set, but, of course, I was.

Sam smiled, "Go on. I'll check on the place tomorrow and make sure it's ready." I thanked him again before leaving.

I wasn't working the floor, so to speak, at Fangtasia tonight, but Eric was. I doubted I could make it home before he left, so I went straight to the bar. I hadn't told Eric about Hunter's gift, and I wasn't sure I was ready to do it now, but I knew he had a better head for scheming than me and I needed a good scheme to make sure Hunter didn't end up spending his life in the service of the FBI.

I parked in the employee section next to Eric's car. It was the only open spot, and I smiled when I thought he must have told everyone else to leave it open for me. I knocked on the back door, since it was locked, and Heidi opened it. She didn't stick around to make small talk, but went right back to wherever she'd come from. I closed the door behind me and made my way to the bar.

My smile spread wider the closer I got, and it wasn't my crazy Sookie smile. Eric was sitting on his throne looking very Viking in his brown leather pants and – rush of pleasure – the belt I'd bought for him at the costume shop. When my eyes moved up from his pants, I noticed he was wearing the same suede vest that he'd worn at Hooligan's. He was wearing it open with nothing underneath. I licked my lips. When my gaze finally made it up to his, I saw he was doing the same assessment of me.

I took a step towards him but he was faster. He greeted my tonsils with his tongue and I curved my pelvis into his pants to say "Hi" right back. After a few seconds, Rasul cleared his throat next to us.

"What?" Eric mumbled without detaching himself. Embarrassed, I tried to pull back, but he wasn't letting go.

"The King of Mississippi is on the phone. There's been another case," Rasul said.

Eric released me, licking my lips with the tip of his tongue as he did. "I'll grab a booth," I said. He and Rasul went to the back.

Indira was working again and automatically brought be an iced tea. It was so thoughtful I almost didn't tell her I needed something a little stiffer. Almost. She was back in a vampire minute, about seven human seconds, with a gin and tonic. "Thanks."

I took a sip and let my shields down to scan the crowd. _Oh God! Did you see the way he kissed her? I wonder if I nicked my neck if I could get him to kiss me like that . . . He is so hot hot hot hot . . . Just look at that bulge in his pants, oh daddy, I heard he was hung but oh my . . . The blonde at the bar is pretty hot. I should try to pick her up. No vamps are paying her attention anyway and she doesn't seem too interested in them. No bite marks and she ain't dressed like a fangbanger . . . looks just like when I saw him at that club, I wonder if he still has that sword, I better check and see if he's dancing again . . . What does she do to him that makes him worship her like that? Maybe I should go blonde . . . I just need to make him bite me, one bite, that's all it will take, I won't fall back under his spell, and even if I do it won't matter . . . I wish he'd see me once, just once, I come here every night and he's never even noticed . . . if Dale sees a vampire bit me he'll want me again . . . when she smells like that I want to eat her and fuck her and lick every_ . . . Jesus Christ Shepard of Judea, that's Eric!

The Viking currently starring in the fantasies of half the bar put one hand on the table and the other on the back of my booth to support his weight as he leaned in, pushing me onto my back. He moved his knee between my legs and used it to slide my skirt up.

"Eric!" I yelled at him as firmly as I could in a whisper. "Snap out of it. We're in the bar."

"Mmmm, and I want it to smell like sex and you. Every time I have to sit here I want to think of fucking you and sucking you." Sounds good to me. When his fangs scraped my neck I came back to my senses. The bar is open, and crowded. "Eric!" I pushed against him with all my strength. If he bit me, there would be no stopping his blood lust. He'd have me in the bar, in this booth, in front of all these people. Afraid that grabbing his hair and pulling would just arouse him more, I used the bond. I thought of all the terrible, disgusting things I could and pushed those feeling towards him. I thought of Victor cut in half, Judith screaming as she burned and Hungry's appendix in the trash. I shoved the feelings at Eric as I shoved at his chest, and he relented.

He moved back enough to let me sit up a little and pull my skirt back down, but his fangs were still out and his pants were under serious stress. "Maybe you should sit on the other side?" I suggested.

He did and Indira showed up with two bottles of True Blood. She sure was scoring points with me tonight. Eric downed the first in one gulp and then followed it with half the second. His personality came back into his eyes, so I figured I was safe, for now.

"Tell me something," I said. He quirked an eyebrow. "Just start talking and keep going until I know you're not going to jump me again." He smiled, but then his face went serious.

"Heidi told you about the sickness?"

"Vamp flu. Yep. Is that why Russell called?"

"Yes. As best I can tell, it originated in New Orleans shortly after Katrina. It began as a few isolated cases, but the vampires recovered quickly, so it was not seen as a threat."

I wasn't sure if Eric picked this topic because he wanted to tell me or because he wanted to change his mood, but he was certainly changing his mood.

"Heidi said there are vamps who've been sick for a year."

"A slight exaggeration, though not by much. This is a curious affliction. The newer cases are far more serious and have resisted all treatments."

Suddenly I was in a panic. Eric might get sick. I'd never thought of him as vulnerable in any way and the realization that he might be made my head spin. He reached across the table to take my hand. "Don't worry, lover, it will not affect me."

"Eric, you don't know that. You don't know anything about this." Then another thought occurred to me. "You need to drink. From me. Now. If there's some super vamp flu going around you need to be strong. I can't believe you agreed to stop feeding from me. You should have told me!"

"I appreciate the offer, Sookie, and I'll take you up on that soon, but as far as we know it makes no difference. What's more concerning at the moment is that it is spreading. There have been cases in Mississippi and now in Alabama as well. We can no longer ignore the situation."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Right now we are gathering information about the afflicted. The flu, as you call it, does not appear to be contagious, though it is spreading as if it were."

"And mutating," I said.

"Perhaps." His thumb was rubbing circles across my palm as he drifted into his own thoughts. I was happy to find I didn't drift in with him.

"I sensed you were worried earlier." He said after Indira brought another bottle for him and glass for me.

"When am I not?"

"Tell me."

"Amelia went back to New Orleans. Apparently Octavia, you remember her, right?" He nodded. "Well, she's missing, I guess, and it's got Amelia freaked out. Oh, that reminds me, I called Pam earlier to ask her to help."

"Yes, she mentioned that."

"So you already knew." There was an accusation in my tone.

"Only that you asked if a vampire attacked some human. I did not know the witches were involved." He should have just added, "I couldn't care less, except that it worries you."

I thought about telling him about Hunter, but something stopped me. He was staring at me while I debated with myself, and I figured he was going to try to drag it out of me.

"Come here," he said.

"That's not a good idea," I said.

"I won't attack you." I walked around to his side of the booth. He leaned back against the wall and wrapped his arms around me. I leaned back against his chest.

"I'm glad you like the belt," I said. He pushed his pelvis forward and I felt the belt and other things against my back. "Behave." "You brought it up."

Suddenly Eric stiffened all over. I looked up to see a beautiful, petite blonde woman approaching us. She looked out of place in here, wearing a knee length fitted beige skirt with a small slit up one thigh and thin pale blue silk sweater with a large cross-shaped broach pinned above her left breast. Her pumps were just the right height to look sexy but sophisticated, and they perfectly matched her clutch. She walked with the elegance that comes with money, class and a good education. And Eric was responding to her. I must have been twelve shades of jealous. While I liked that my current position put me completely between Eric and her, I felt a little too junior high, so I moved out of Eric's arms to sit up properly in the booth.

"Eric," she said. Her thoughts burst through my shield in a wave of confused and conflicting emotions. She hated Eric with every bit of her being and was also completely and helplessly in love with him. I also got a wave of desperate lust as she took in his open vest and bulging erection. "Is this the flavor of the week?" Bitch.

"Sookie, this is Yvonne," Eric said. "Yvonne, this is my wife, Sookie." Hungry gets an appendectomy and Yvonne gets an introduction. Suddenly I was all in favor of equality for the sexes.

Yvonne didn't take her eyes off of Eric. She wasn't getting past the "wife" part, and I could hear in her tangled thoughts that Eric's declaration might just have hurt her as much as his dissection had hurt Hungry. My compassion made some headway against my jealousy for a moment, until she spoke again.

"She certainly looks like she could last a while. But given how pale you look, maybe not." Eric moved at that one, but I put my hand out to stop him. The contact kept him calmer, for now. Clearly Yvonne had some issues here that needed addressing, and as much as I didn't want to leave, I knew my presence was only making them worse. I slid out of the booth. To my surprise, Eric followed me.

"You two need to talk," I said to Eric, "I'll go get a drink at the bar." I was a little hurt that Eric let me go without a fuss, but I could tell his feelings towards Yvonne weren't at all warm or fuzzy, so I tried to take the high rode. Of course, I kept tabs on his emotions and her thoughts while up on high.

Yvonne was so wound up that I couldn't get a clear line of thought from her. Only the conflict of her two biggest emotions, both directed towards Eric. Eric was mostly annoyed and a little angry, with a small flare of something, not quite guilt – that was another emotion not in his palette – but close.

After a long five minutes, Yvonne's hate and hurt was winning out and I sensed she was about to do something desperate. I headed over to where they stood. Before I got there, she pulled the broach off of her top and plunged it into Eric. If he hadn't deflected her with his vampire reflexes, it would have gone straight into his heart. Instead, it landed in the soft spot between his chest and shoulder. From the burning smell I knew it was silver.

Eric backhanded her to the floor and moved on top of her ready to bite. I could hear Yvonne screaming in my head, but she was screaming for him to do it. She has some serious issues with my Viking. "Eric, stop!" I pulled at his arm and he hesitated. "Stop! Please, stop!" He was in a rage, but he was trying to listen. "Rasul, get everyone out!" I ordered, then I did the one thing I could think of to save Yvonne's life, though I was pretty sure she wouldn't be thanking me for it. I kissed him.

Eric's attention turned immediately from her to me, but the blood lust still raged. I could hear running around me and could only hope Rasul would get everyone out soon. Eric's hands grabbed at my flesh and his mouth moved down to my neck. He sucked and licked, trying to resist the temptation. His fingers found me and I arched into him. With my head back I saw the room was already empty – Thank you, Rasul! – "Bite." His fangs sank in almost before I said it. He carried me to the booth, still drinking, and laid us down. The table was causing problems so he pushed it out the way. I hear it snap and crash into the wall on the other side of the room and realized how much Eric was holding back to avoid hurting me.

He lifted his mouth from my neck and ripped off my skirt and panties with one pull. In the next second his pants were off and he was inside me. I reached up to his shoulder and pulled out the broach. Eric's head went back and he shouted some ancient profanity. I put my lips to the wound and sucked. He pushed into me at a furious pace and I felt the booth collapse a little lower under us. With each other's blood on our lips, our mouths met again and we both erupted. When Eric's weight fell on me the booth sank even lower and tipped us onto the floor. Thankfully, I landed on top of him.

"Are you okay?" I asked when I could speak again.

"You are surprisingly creative in a crisis," he said.

"You were going to bite somebody. I'd rather it be me."

"Me, too."

I moved to get off of him, and he floated us to standing. Neat trick. He disappeared but before I could wonder to wear he returned with a pair of sweatpants from the gift shop. "Thanks," I said as he handed them to me.

"Thank you," he said and kissed me. I wasn't quite sure what he was thanking me for.

Eric stood surveying the damage to the bar. Apart from the booth that we'd demolished, there were a few overturned chairs and some broken glasses from the mass exit, but nothing too serious. I looked at Eric's shoulder. The wound had mostly healed, but not completely. I ran my fingers gently over it, and Eric put his hand on mine.

"I'm fine," he assured me. "We need to leave. The police may be coming."

Eric started gathering our scattered and torn clothes. The thought of the police reminded me of the FBI, and of Hunter. With all the excitement of the evening, it had slipped my mind. I knew it wasn't the right time, but I had to tell Eric. I just wasn't sure how to do it. I started running sentences through my head to see how they sounded, but I was too frazzled to keep a steady train of thought.

"Yes, we must discuss the child," he said. Then we both froze, staring at each other. I hadn't said a word.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Eric unfroze first. "We must go," he said. He started towards the back exit, but stopped when he realized I wasn't following him. He came back, scooped me up, and rushed us to the nearly empty parking lot. He considered for a moment, then put me in the passenger seat of my Lexus and went around to the other side. "Keys?" he asked. I still didn't move.

Eric could read my mind. Eric knew about Hunter. This was all I could think about.

He took my bag and fished for the keys. I was alert enough to resister the sound of sirens as we pulled away from Fangtasia. We made it home in record time. Eric extracted me from the car and carried me into the house. He set me on the couch before disappearing into his office with his phone at his ear. He came out a minute later.

"Sookie," he said. I looked up at him.

"How long?" I asked in a small voice. I wasn't sure if I was asking how long he'd been able to read my mind or how long he'd known about Hunter. Probably it was both.

"I cannot read your mind." Bullshit.

Eric sat beside me and took my hands. I instantly pulled them back, but he didn't let go. "You have no idea what you are capable of, my lover."

"Tell me the truth, Eric," I said.

"I cannot read your mind, but you can push thoughts into mine," he said. "You have done it only a few times. I suspected you were unaware of what you were doing, which appears to be the case."

The only people I'd ever pushed thoughts to were Barry and Hunter, both telepaths. How on earth could I push thoughts to Eric? "How is that even possible?"

"I do not know," he smiled. He was proud of me. I read that through the bond, not his mind. "I suspect that the blood bond makes it possible."

"How often?" I asked.

"It has happened three times. All of them when you were experiencing strong emotions, usually fear. The first time was the night you listened to a man for Victor." Joshua. Victor was torturing him. I remembered that night all too clearly. I had been thinking I wanted Victor to die. I had been picturing him with a stake in his chest, and Eric had told me "Soon."

_Do you feel me inside your head?_ I asked him silently, but he did not react. I tried again, but again nothing. I decided I needed a stronger question. I concentrated hard on the void that was his mind. _Do you know I can read your mind?_ Eric stiffened.

"Just mine?" he asked in a tense voice.

I suppose it was time to come clean about a number of things. "No, but you more than anyone. I only rarely ever hear a vampire thought. It's not reliable at all and I shut my mind out as soon as it starts." It was a relief to finally tell him. "You were the first one I heard. And you're the only one I've ever heard more than once."

Eric said nothing. I could feel through the bond that he was angry . . . and hurt. "What do you hear now?" he asked finally.

"Nothing."

"Earlier?"

"I was listening to the bar, trying to scan around for anything suspicious. I picked up on your thoughts before I even realized it was you. You smelled Claude and were picturing me naked." I looked down, feeling ashamed. As soon as I had heard Eric, he'd told me what he was thinking, so it wasn't that I'd heard something private that I shouldn't have. It was the invasion, and the fact that he didn't know about it.

"Does anyone else know that you can do this?"

"No."

"Bill?"

"Eric, you are the only person I've ever told." _I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. I was afraid. _If he heard my silent apology, he didn't respond to it.

After a few minutes he asked, "Can the child read us as well?"

"How do you know about Hunter?"

"I suspected when I saw him in your house and could not glamour him back to sleep."

"What? You tried to glamour him?" I wrenched my hands from his and stood up.

Eric ignored the question. "When you told me he was Hadley's, my suspicion was confirmed."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"You wanted to protect the child, even from me it seems. There was no need for me to interfere at that point. I decided to wait for you to tell me. Can the child read vampires?"

"No. He's just a little boy, Eric. He can't be dragged into this."

"I have no intention of dragging him into anything." He was completely sincere. "You told me about him tonight, so I gather you want my help." Eric rose and went to the kitchen. He put a TrueBlood in the microwave.

I told Eric about Hunter, everything about him. I explained about Lattesta and the FBI, and my worry that Hunter would be taken away from his father. Eric listened and plotted.

"You are correct that it would be safer for them to move closer, at the very least into my Area. If Niall has given you a pass with the FBI, then it may be possible to extend his protection to the child as well."

"Sam has a rental house in Bon Temps that's empty. He said they could stay there for a while, until we figure something else out."

We figured out a plan to hold us over until Eric could see what he could do about the FBI. I had suggested that I try to contact Agent Weiss, Lattesta's former partner, but Eric didn't want to risk me getting pulled back into dealings with them.

We had made it back over to the couch now. Eric was leaning on one side, legs spread out, and I was curled up on the other. It was barely 2am by the time we'd settled the situation with Hunter, at least for now. I was still wearing the Fangtasia sweats with my sweater, but Eric hadn't bothered getting another shirt. I looked for the wound on his chest, but couldn't find it.

"How's your shoulder?" I asked.

"Healed. You extracted the poisoned blood before it spread." I felt his arousal at the memory. He smiled, sensing mine, too.

"Who is she?" He knew who I meant.

"A former employee."

"She didn't look like a fangbanger."

"She was my day person for a while, before the Great Reveal."

"You had sex with her?" I knew the answer already. I'd seen Yvonne's memories.

"Yes." I could tell in his tone that he thought this was both obvious and irrelevant. Before we became an item, Eric had sex with most all of his attractive female employees, as long as they were willing. It was hard to image a woman who wouldn't be willing with Eric.

"Was she ever, like, a girlfriend or anything?" She sure thought she had been, but I wanted to know what Eric thought about it.

"She was a servant. Nothing more." He meant it. That certainly explained some of her issues with him. She saw him as her greatest love, and he saw her as a meal and a fuck, as he'd put it. I felt another wave of sympathy for Yvonne.

Eric's phone rang then. He listened for a minute, then said, "Do everything else, but leave the booth," and hung up.

"You aren't going to fix the booth?" I asked.

"Do you really think I would destroy the evidence now that you finally allowed me to take you in my bar?" I noticed his fangs were fully extended as he asked.

I rolled up onto my knees and crawled over to his side of the couch, climbing over his outstretched legs. "You know, you've never had me on this couch, either." Forty-five later, that wasn't true anymore.

The next morning I found a note from Eric on the coffee machine. It contained simple instructions for working Pam's gift. I gave it a shot, and was pleasantly surprised. Not only was it not so hard to work, but the coffee was excellent. As soon as I had finished my coffee and breakfast, I called Remy.

"He came back today," Remy was telling me. "He says he can declare me unfit to raise my son. Sookie, I can't lose Hunter. I can't."

"You aren't going to. I know it's a lot to ask, but it would be so much better if y'all would move over here. A friend of mine has some rental houses, they're clean and not too expensive. And I'm sure we can find some work for you out here, or you can commute if you want. But we can protect Hunter better the closer he is."

"Sookie, I know you say your, uh, husband wants to help . . . " Remy had some problems with the undead, and given what happened with Hadley, I wasn't at all surprised.

"Remy, you can think what you want about vampires, but Eric is a good man. And he's going to make sure no one, vampire or human, tries to hurt either of you. Please just trust me on this, even if you don't want to trust him."

I heard a long sigh before he answered. "When should we move in?"

"Thank you," I said, relieved. "The sooner the better. Y'all start packing and let me know as soon as everything's boxed up. My brother, Jason, has a truck, so we can come over whenever y'all are ready. I know this is going to be hard, on both of you, but it's the right thing to do."

"I believe you," he said. "And it won't be too hard. Hunter doesn't have many friends anymore, and frankly neither do I. Maybe it'll be good for us to get a fresh start." God bless him, he was trying.

"I think it will. Let me know when y'all are ready. If Agent Lattesta comes back, call the number I gave you." Part of me hoped Lattesta would try something at night, when the vampires would be the one's answering the call. That thought made me shiver, and I chided myself for it on behalf of my Gran.

Having a plan was already making me feel better, even though I didn't really know how things were going to play out. Having Eric in on it made all the difference.

After my shower I stood in front of the mirror for a long while. My hair was light as ever and my skin was perfect. Ever time I had Eric's blood, it seemed to make me look healthier and prettier than ever. I knew that vampire blood could do this, and Eric's blood was especially potent stuff, but somehow realizing it now was a bit of a shock. I wondered how else I might be changing that I couldn't see. I knew my libido was more active and worried that my conscience was a little less active.

I called up Jason after I got dressed to see if I could stop by after he got home from work. Then I headed out to run some errands. My cell phone rang while I was at Target.

"Sookie, it's Michael." I'd had a momentary panic when I saw his name on the phone, in case he was calling about Remy and Hunter, but the tone of his voice put me at ease. He was frustrated, but not worried.

"Hey, Michael. What's up?"

"I'm over at Bites and the health inspectors are here. One of them is trying to give us a hard time, and I was hoping, if you aren't too busy, that you could come over and check him out." Eric had ripped Michael a new one for calling me with requests like this before, but I'd been pretty clear about wanting to help out whenever I could. Luckily, Michael listened to me on this one, once I'd promised to clear the way with Eric.

"I'm not too busy. I can make it over in about 40 minutes, does that work?"

"That would be great. Thanks, Sookie."

I decided to get both shampoos instead of trying to choose between them. Eric used more than I did, and I used a lot, so having extra wouldn't be a problem. I also picked up more soap. We tended to go through bars pretty fast these days, and I was secretly wondering if the EPA would be contacting us soon about our water usage. There were just so many fun things to do in the shower. Shaking off the thoughts of what all we could do this evening when he rose, I pushed my cart to the check out so I could keep my promise of 40 minutes.

From the outside, Bites looked like a little old country cottage in early 1900 provincial France. At closer look, the building was brand new and the windows were painted on. The sign out front read, "Bites: Grand Opening November 12".

Bites was Eric's latest business venture. A restaurant that catered to humans and vampires. The local chamber of commerce were very excited about the prospect, except for the one member who had definite Fellowship sympathies. Everyone else was thrilled that there would finally be a more comfortable place to have business dinners with vampire clients, and I was thrilled that Eric and I would finally have a place to go out to dinner for special occasions.

I went up to the door and walked right in. It wasn't that I felt like I owned the place, though technically I did. Eric had thought it would look better for the place to be owned by a vampire and a human. Since we were married, though not according to the Great State of Louisiana, that made it an even stronger case. The décor inside was simple and warm. The painted windows were covered with tasteful drapes and the tables were an antique looking wood. Most of the tables sat two, but there were several four-tops and even a back room for large private parties. There was no visible bar and just a small swinging door that led back to the kitchen. That's where all the minds were congregated, so I walked on through.

Michael was arguing with another man who I presumed was one of the health inspectors. This was our last inspection before the Grand Opening next weekend, assuming we passed. As Michael had asked, I dipped into the inspector's mind to see what I could find. In a word: sabotage. He was making excuses so that another team would have to come back tomorrow to complete the inspection, and he was planning to come over tonight and unleash some pests. Ant and roaches. Yuck. He knew that he would be suspected if he was the one who found them, since his boss knew he went to the Fellowship of the Sun, so he wanted a vampire sympathizer to write us up. I got the details from him fairly easily since he was a strong broadcaster.

"Hello, Michael," I said, to announce my presence.

Michael relaxed and the inspector tensed. He knew who I was and hated me. It took me a minute to realize that he didn't know I was telepathic, just that I was Eric Northman's wife, and that was the cause of his disgust. He was also extremely attracted to me and that made both of us all the more uncomfortable. I jumped quickly out of this thoughts when I got a strong mental image of him ripping off my skirt. I put my hands by the side to make sure I was indeed wearing slacks.

"Sookie, this is Albert Swanson from the Health Department," Michael said.

"Mr. Swanson," I said, extending my hand. I was glad he didn't take it.

"As I was telling Mr. Morrison, the inspection will have to be completed tomorrow."

"That's fine, Mr. Swanson," I said.

Michael looked surprised and a little angry, but went along. After Albert and his team left, Michael and I sat at one of the tables. He looked at me expectantly.

"He's planning to give us an infestation tonight so that we fail tomorrow's inspection. There will be four of them, Alberto, two other men, and a woman. They're planning to come around 9pm."

"Sookie, you're amazing." I couldn't help but smile at him. "I'll tell Master Eric and plan an interception." I left him to it.

Jason had just made it home by the time I got to his house. Michele wasn't home yet, so I took the opportunity to ask how the run went. "Great. Thanks again, sis. It was really nice to be back there."

"You're welcome to go any time you want, Jason. Calvin didn't have a problem being there?"

"Nah. He was fine once I told him it was you offering and not Eric. He says if you ever need anything from him, all you have to do is ask."

"I may take him up on that soon," I said, with a bit of guilt. I hadn't wanted to ask Calvin for anything in return, but I hadn't known about the situation with Hunter then. I told Jason all about Hunter and Remy and the FBI. Jason was mad at first that I hadn't told him about another family member, but he got over that pretty quickly.

"And he's like you?" Jason asked for the third time. He couldn't bring himself to say "telepathic".

"Yes." I said. "He's gifted like me."

"Well, just let me know when you need my truck." Hunter was family, and that was enough for my brother. Michele came home a little later and Jason filled her in, sort of. He mostly told her we have a cousin, a kid, and he has to move here with his dad cause of family stuff. Michele understood a lot more than Jason told her, and was real gracious about it. She even offered to have a barbecue after they moved in, to help make them feel welcome. I thought that was a perfect idea and told her so. I was feeling a lot better about the situation by the time I'd left.

It was still a little while before sunset when I got home. At the gate, the security guard handed me two packages that had been delivered by courier while I was out. He'd x-rayed both but hadn't opened either. With Amelia's wards in place, I thought screening our mail was a little extreme, but I left Eric to his paranoia.

At home, I set the packages in the living room and went to Eric's office. I rummaged a little through the piles on his desk looking for the letter opener. Instead, I found a buff-colored envelop with a blue wax blob. I recognized my great-grandfather's seal right away. The envelop was empty, but there was writing on the other side: "E". I looked at the winged seal again. This was definitely from Niall and it was definitely addressed to Eric and not me.

Maybe Eric had contacted Niall about the FBI and Hunter. But if Eric had a way to contact Niall, surely he would have told me about it? Anyway, he couldn't have gotten a response last night, unless, of course, he had already been talking with Niall about it. I thought for a moment about looking further for the letter, but then I remembered last night. I had been keeping secrets from Eric, important secrets, and it had hurt him to realized it. Maybe he would tell me if I asked. I had to give him the chance.

I found the letter opener in the top drawer and took it out to the living room. Opening my mystery packages would be a good enough distraction until Eric rose and I could ask him about the letter. I opened the larger one first. It contained a yellow floral skirt that would sit a little above the knee. It was similar to, but a fair bit nicer than, the skirt Eric ripped last night. There was also a matching bra and thong set, both pale yellow and a little lacy. I read the card: "Replacements for last night. E." Eric sure knew his way around internet shopping. I turned my attention to the second package.

Inside was a small card and a large jewelry box. I opened the box first, already knowing it was from Eric. It took all of a second to realize it wasn't. The necklace inside must have cost a fortune, but that's not how I knew it wasn't from my Viking. It just wasn't his style. It had a huge ruby the size of a cherry in the center, with alternating raisin-sized rubies and diamonds running along the thick gold chain, each one much larger than the diamond on my finger. At the clasp, the raisin chain alternated red and white down a single golden vine for about an inch and a half before ending in cherry-sized diamond. I set the box on the table and looked at the card. "For the ever lovely Miss Stackhouse. I hope to see you in this soon. Felipe." I was so shocked that I barely felt Eric rise.

He was upstairs standing behind the couch a few moments later wearing my favorite outfit, nothing at all. "I buy you gifts and still that doesn't persuade you back to bed before sunset? You are a hard woman to please." He was teasing me, so he hadn't noticed the other package yet.

"You aren't the only one," I said, holding up the box and handing him the card. Eric was angry, very angry. Really, would it have killed him to be a little jealous, too? Not that he took me for granted ever, but a little jealousy would have been nice right about now.

"What should I do with it?" I asked.

He crumpled the note in his fist and let it fall to the ground. "What would you like to do with it?"

"Give it back."

"Then that's what you should do." He raised his hand to his mouth and then touched the necklace briefly before closing the case. The hole in his finger had healed by the time I realized what he'd done. It was a warning, I supposed, or maybe just a rude gesture. Either way, his message was clear: she is mine.

"I don't know where to send it," I told him.

"Give it to Michael. He will take care of it."

"Speaking of Michael, he wanted to talk to you when you got up. Some Fellowship fanatics are planning to infest your new restaurant tonight, so it'll fail the inspections tomorrow."

"How did he discover this?" he asked, knowing the answer already.

"Because I went over there today and read the inspector's mind, just like you pay me to do." Eric had no issues asking me to work for him, but he had a real problem whenever someone else asked, even if it was for his benefit. We'd come to a kind of truce about Michael requesting my help during the day, but it was an uneasy one.

"It is your restaurant as well," he said. He reached over the couch and slid his hand into my pocket to take my phone. The movement shortened my breathing and raised my body temperature. "Use the Weres. Alcide will send as many as you need. Make sure the police are present." He slid the phone back into my pocket.

I turned around on the couch to kiss him, but since I was sitting and he was standing, the top of my head was right in line with his navel. That worked, too. He gripped into my hair making sounds of sheer pleasure. "Use your hand, too," he said. I did and soon had him shaking and chanting in ancient tongues. After he'd had a minute to recover, he climbed over the couch and my pants had disappeared. He used his hands, too.

The couch wasn't quite big enough for us to lie down side by side, but we managed with a few adjustments. He stroked my hair with the arm I wasn't lying on, and I snuggled my head into his chest. "I love you," I told him for no reason other than that it was true. He put a hand to my chin to lift my face until our eyes met. "Say it again," he said. "I love you, Eric." He rolled over to hover above me, and we put a few more miles on the couch.

Once we were separated and dressed, I decided to ask about the letter. "Eric, have you heard anything from Niall, since he left?" I asked.

"Yes. And you know this, or you would not have asked me." He fixed me with a penetrating look.

"I found the envelop on your desk today when I was looking for the letter opener," I confessed.

"I need to be certain that the fairies have left," he said by way of explanation. "I also thought it best to inform him of my plans for the restaurant."

"Why would he care that you're opening a restaurant?"

"It is possible that he would find some of the menu selections offensive. Better to tell him ahead of time."

"You aren't putting Claude on the menu, are you?"

"Not exactly," he said with a sly wink. "Come, we have a meeting." I decided to let it go for now. I was pretty sure Eric wouldn't actually serve Claude to the customers, and I'd probably have better luck getting answers from Claude anyway.

Betty Joe Pickard, Russell's second in command, was waiting for us at Fangtasia. She had a bit of a soft spot for me since I'd taken a stake for her a while back. Sitting beside her, to my surprise, was Selah Pumphrey. She was just about as happy to see me as I was to see her, which is not at all.

Betty Joe stood to greet us. "Sookie," she said, "It is a great pleasure to see you again. You are looking as lovely as ever." She smiled and I noticed her fangs were partially extended. I really needed to take it easier with drinking Eric's blood.

"I'm glad to see you're doing well, too," I said to her.

"Your Majesty," she greeted Eric with the typical vampire nod, though a little deeper given his position.

Selah drank in Eric like she was a woman left in the desert for four days and he was a 6'4" glass of ice water. Since my role in this meeting was to the read the lawyer, who happened to be my ex's ex, I had to watch her taking off his clothes and lapping up every inch of him before I managed to pull out of her mind. This was not going to be a fun evening.

Rather than joining them at their table, we all headed back to Eric's office. Vampires aren't known for small talk, so the meeting started right away and I had to lower my shield and step back in to Selah's mind. Every time she looked my way she felt a whole heap of jealousy. She thought I'd stolen Bill just to mess with her, since I obviously didn't want him back. She was also mad at me for her newfound insecurities that came from Bill's constant obsession with me while he was with her. Apparently he'd even gone so far as to ask her to wear a blonde wig one night. I was a little disappointed in Bill for that one. Ever time Selah looked at Eric, she indulged her fantasies which were a little uninspired, I thought. She also thought about how good it would feel to get her revenge by stealing him away from me. _Good luck_, I thought to her.

As Eric and Betty Joe discussed finer points in the pending treaty between Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, most of which had to do with the fact that Russell's marriage to Bart superseded anything else, I tried to pull out any deception from Selah. As best I could tell, she and the treaty were on the up and up. But then another thought occurred to me.

When the meeting was over, Selah followed Betty Joe out of the office. I dashed to the door, holding a finger to Eric to ask him to wait. "Selah," I said, "Can I have a word?"

Confused but curious, she stopped and walked back towards me. "Have you seen Bill lately?" I asked. Immediately she turned on her heels and left in a huff. That was fine, I'd gotten what I wanted. She hadn't seen Bill since she told him she was taking a job with the Arkansas firm. She was still upset that he'd let her go without a word and thought that I was just rubbing it in her face. I was sorry to cause her more pain – though part of me was glad to have some revenge for having to watch her mentally making out with Eric all evening – but at least I knew for sure that she had nothing to do with Bill's disappearance. I went back in to the office.

"Everything is solid. They aren't holding back on this. Russell is insistent that the treaty be signed no matter what compromises need to be made. He thinks aligning himself with you will only increase his power and wealth. Also, he has the hots for you," I said, giving my full report.

"Very well," Eric said, still in business mode. "I will contact Mr. Cataliades to let him know we wish to proceed."

"Where's Bill?" I asked myself out of sheer frustration.

"I do not know where he is, lover, but we will find out. Heidi is the best tracker I have, and she is giving this matter her full attention." Now there was that twinge of jealousy I had been looking for earlier. Of course, now I felt guilty for bringing it out.

"I know," I said. "I just want him to be okay. That's all." I walked over to stand by Eric. He pulled me into a comforting hug.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

I managed to get a reasonably early night for once. The problem with that was that I didn't really have a plan for what to do during the day. I wasn't scheduled for a shift at Merlotte's until tomorrow night, the house was stocked with groceries and blood and, since the cleaning crew had been in two nights ago, there really wasn't much to tidy around the house. At Gran's, I would have had plenty of chores to do as you always have with an old house. But in a new house, nothing needs fixing. Since it was Sunday, I decided maybe a church service would be a good morning activity.

I went downstairs to the faintly lit bedroom and pulled out my Sunday best. I pinned my hair up, dabbed on some make-up, grabbed a purse and keys and was out the door. When I got there, it was a little after 10am and the service begins at 10:30am, so I didn't have too much time to dawdle. To my surprise, as soon as I walked in I saw my brother Jason sitting with Michele. I couldn't remember the last time anyone had gotten Jason to go to church. Actually, I could. Gran had dragged him by the earlobes the Easter before she passed. I smiled a real smile as I went over to sit with them.

The service was nice, and I even stayed for tea afterwards. Maxine Fortenbury had made Mrs. Bellefleur's famous chocolate cake, using the recipe that old Mrs. Bellefleur had given to the town in her will. It wasn't as good as the real thing, which I'd had on a few rare and memorable occasions, but it was a real treat and I appreciated it. After chatting a bit more with Jason and Michele, I headed back home feeling better for my morning.

I was shocked when I saw Alcide's truck parked at the entry gate. His argument with the security guards at the gate ended as soon as he saw me. I parked by him and got out.

"Sookie," he said, genuinely glad to see me.

"Hey, Alcide," I said, a bit confused. I thought it was a bit rude to ask why he was here, so I waited for him to tell me.

Alcide pulled me in to a warm hug. "Listen, Sookie," his voice was low and a little urgent, "I need to talk to you. Are you busy? Can I take you out to lunch?" I gathered he meant now. Well, I supposed I was already dressed up. "Sure, I've got time. Where did you want to go?"

"How about Jacquelyn's?"

"I'll follow you there."

We got back into our cars and headed over to Louisiana Avenue. Luckily the drive was short, so my curiosity didn't burn a hole in my head. We got a quiet table for two in the back. After we'd ordered, Alcide got the Jambalaya and I had the chicken salad, he got down to business.

"I know you know about the IRS coming down hard on us lately," he began. By "us" he meant shape shifters, or more precisely, werewolves. "But we've been having other troubles, too."

I nodded, showing I was listening.

"Our businesses are being vandalized," he said angrily. "There's a website up now, listing all the Weres in Shreveport with work and home addresses. And they're encouraging folks to picket and boycott, and it's causing real problems for all of us. The whole pack."

I had a feeling I knew who "they" was, but I wanted to check. "Who's behind it?" I asked.

"The police can't say for sure, but we're certain it's those religious nuts. The Fellowship of the Sun."

"I thought they just had it in for vampires."

"So did we. Apparently, they have enough followers now that they need new targets. They're even going after the kids, Sookie. It's disgusting," Alcide said, sounding disgusted.

"That's awful, Alcide. How do they even know who y'all are? The Registration Act didn't pass."

"I think I've got an informant in my pack," he said in all seriousness.

"A sheep in wolf's clothing?" I couldn't help myself, but I felt awful when I saw the look on Alcide's face. No part of this was funny to him. "But that doesn't make any sense. The spy would have to be a Were." Not even other shifters were allowed into the pack, much less humans. I only attended the rare meeting because of my status as friend of the pack, but that still didn't make me privy to the regular pack meetings or other goings on.

"There's no other explanation," he said. I could feel the anger rolling off of him in waves. Just then the waiter arrived with lunch, so we waited until he left to pick the conversation back up.

"The Fellowship knows things about us that haven't been made public yet. And they know every member of my pack, and every kid that's gonna be a member."

"Do you have any idea who it is?"

"I have some ideas," he said, and from his tone I wouldn't like to be one of those ideas. "But that's where you come in." Oh. Right.

"You want me to try to read the pack? Find out who the traitor is?" He nodded. "Of course," I said, and I meant it. If I could help them out, I certainly would. "I can try to do that, but you know it's hard to get a read on Weres sometimes. I can't be sure I'll be able to find out who's in on it."

"Sookie," Alcide leaned in towards me, "I'm not asking you this as a friend of the pack," he said. His eyes bored into mine. "I'm asking you this as the pack shaman."

I pulled back. "I'm not!" I said, trying to keep my voice low. "Alcide, that was a one shot deal. I'm not your pack mystic."

"Actually, you are," he said, and he had the decency to look a little guilty. "When you took the drink, you became our shaman. For life."

Now it was my turn to heat up the room with rage. He'd asked me to take some mysterious potion once, to find out who'd killed and buried a man in my yard. I'd done it, reluctantly, but with the expectation that it was a one time incident. Alcide never told me there would be consequences, other than a nasty hangover which I definitely didn't enjoy. Then another thought occurred to me.

"Is this why you've been helping Eric? Why you've let him hire Weres as guards and settle disputes? Because of me?"

"Yes," he said. He looked annoyed by that. Well, good. "Since you married him, he has a certain status with the pack. And he hasn't been shy about using it." That sounded like Eric.

"And y'all decided not to let me know any of this because . . ?"

"Honestly, Sookie, I thought I wouldn't have to ask you to do this again. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but I have a lot of responsibilities. Right now, my main responsibility is the well-being of my pack. Will you help me or not?"

"Yes," I said. "But I'm not your damned shaman."

"Thank you," he said, placing his hand over mine. "And, yes, you are."

"Do I have to drink that stuff again?" I asked, my voice a little more sulky than I'd have liked.

"Maybe." He finished his lunch and sat back. "It would help, wouldn't it."

"Yes, it'll help me get a better read, but I can't say I'm looking forward to the hangover." He smiled at me, and I couldn't help but smile back a little.

"Thanks, Sookie."

"You're welcome," I grumbled.

I was in a much less cheerful mood when I got back home the second time. I wasn't exactly mad at Alcide. I understood his position. He was pack leader, and he was doing what he had to for his pack. But I was pretty miffed he didn't tell me what I was signing up for that first night. I thought maybe it was because he wasn't sure I'd do it if I'd known, and he might well be right thinking that. Still, I didn't like be tricked into this role.

Then there was Eric. He'd known full well what my position with the pack was now and was making his own use of it. There was a chance he thought I knew, but it was a slim chance. I wished I could wake Eric up and ask him, but that would have to wait for a few more hours.

After fluttering about the house for a few minutes, I calmed down enough to realize that I hadn't turned my cell phone back on after the morning service. Sure enough, I had a messages. I was in the middle of listening to one from Amelia when call waiting interrupted me. Well, speak of the witch.

"Hi Sookie. It's Amelia." She sounded awful.

"Hey sweetie. I was just listening to your message. Any news?" I asked. I figured not, from her tone. She was still worried, so they must not have found Octavia yet, but she wasn't distraught, so nothing worse had happened either.

"Not much. Look, I wanted to let you know I'm heading back to Shreveport tomorrow."

"What about Octavia?" I couldn't figure why Amelia would be dropping the search before they'd found her. She may not always get along with her mentor, but Amelia was loyal to her.

"I don't think she's here. We couldn't get a locator spell to work right, but I think I got it to work enough. I think she's closer to you."

"Me?"

"Well, Shreveport. I don't know for sure, but I think there's something funny going on with the coven." Amelia sounded like there was a lot more she wanted to say, but she wasn't going to say it just yet.

"You think the coven has something to do with her and Louis going missed?" Seems like everyone's got spies. I made a mental note to do a more careful screening of the vermin next time I was at Fangtasia, just in case.

"No, not exactly. But someone keeps blocking me, and I'd put money she's a witch. I have a few more things to sort out here, but then I'll be on the road. I can tell you everything tomorrow."

"You need a place to stay? We have the spare room set up." I didn't really want a house guest, and I was pretty positive Eric would not be happy with someone else living in the same house where he was dead, but I still had to offer.

"Actually, I'm, um, I have a place. Thanks, though. I'll call you tomorrow, when I get in."

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow. Drive safe."

"Sookie . . ." she started to tell me something, then changed her mind. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Sure. We'll talk then." Amelia was worried about Octavia, suspected other witches and had some secret she wasn't sure she could tell me. That was definitely enough to keep my mind off Alcide's visit for a while.

For the second time today, I wished vampires weren't nocturnal. I really wanted to call Pam and see what she'd found out. Then I thought that if there was any big news, she'd have told Eric and he'd have told me. That theory made sense since I knew Eric and Pam spoke just about every night. But then I remembered Eric really didn't like witches, and not for no reason, and he didn't share my concern about Octavia. Also, if he had known I didn't know about the shaman thing and decided to keep it from me, then there were probably lots of other things he knew and wasn't sharing.

Then I realized I also just missed Pam. She didn't make it up to visit too often, only three or four times since Eric became King. I knew she was busy solidifying her position as Sheriff of New Orleans, but she was my friend, and I missed her company.

My phone buzzed again, letting me know I had another message to listen to. This time it was Remy. He was letting me know that he'd finish packing today and would be ready to move as early as tomorrow. I went to the kitchen and looked at the calendar. I learned that the Word of the Day – Erotica Edition was "ménage à trois" and, more to the point, that Tuesday was Veteran's Day. That meant Jason would have the day off. I called him first just to check that he'd be available.

Not only did Jason have the day off, but he volunteered Hoyt and Hoyt's truck to help with the move as well. I called Remy back to let him know. Hunter wouldn't have school, so I could entertain him while the men moved all Remy and Hunter's things to Bon Temps. Remy sounded a bit better this time, and I even got to chat with Hunter a little. He sounded down right excited.

"Is Uncle Claude gonna come, too?" he asked me.

"No, sweetie, but maybe we'll get together with him on the weekend. He sure misses you, so I know he'll be happy to see you."

"Will there be vampires?" He was hoping so, I could tell.

"Nope. We're moving during the daytime, when all the vampires are sleeping."

"What about the vampire who sleeps here? Is he gonna come, too?"

I froze. Then my panic thawed me out. "Hunter, sweetheart, what vampire? Is there a vampire in your house?" I wasn't sure if he was making this up, the way kids sometimes do. I hoped so.

"No. He sleeps outside." He giggled, as if I was missing an obvious point.

"Did you sense him, Hunter, the way we sense things that other people can't?"

"Yes. And I heard him, too."

Oh, Lord! "What did you hear, sweetie?" I was desperately trying to keep the panic out of my voice.

"I heard him singing. He sings at night sometimes." I had a thought.

"Well, I'm sure he'll move too, just not during the day. Hunter, can you put your daddy back on the phone, please?"

"Bye, Aunt Sookie!" he said happily and handed the phone back to Remy.

"Don't worry, Sookie," Remy said, "Hunter sometimes makes up playmates for himself. It's hard on him, you know, being the way he is." I knew all too well, but I didn't think Hunter was making this one up.

"Remy, do you have a cat?" I asked.

"No."

"Do any of your neighbors?"

"Sure. Mrs. Norris across the street has two. Well, she used to. I guess they ran off about a week ago. Why?"

Well, that settled it for me. "Oh, just wondering what pets Hunter might like is all. One of the neighbors here has a cat. You two finish packing up and we'll see you first thing Tuesday." We hung up shortly after. I added one more thing to my list of questions for Eric, when he rose.

By now it was close to 5pm. I decided I wanted my answers, so I went downstairs, slid out of my skirt and blouse, and climbed back into bed.

I looked at the naked corpse beside me, sprawled out exactly as he had been when I got up. It amazed me sometimes when I thought about how crazy my life had become. Four years ago, I had no idea vampires existed outside of stories. Now not only was I married to a 1000 year old Viking vampire, but I was also the psychedelic lie detector for a pack of werewolves, sister to a bitten were-panther who changed only at the full moon, best friends with a Wiccan witch who turned her lovers into cats, and cousin to a mischievous fairy who had it bad for my husband. What would Gran say if she could see us now?

As I was thinking all this over, a cold arm made its way across the bed to wrap around my waist. Eric pulled me in to him and ran his tongue over my ear. Before I could remember that I was supposed to be interrogating Eric about Alcide and Bubba, I found myself leaning back into him and reaching my hand back to grab hold of his gorgeous butt. The arm I was lying on curved up so he could massage my breasts through my bra. His other hand slid down and under the elastic of my panties. I reached my hand around to the other side of him, and he let out a hungry moan as I caressed his length. His hands picked up their tempo inside me as I tugged him closer to me.

I moved to turn around, but he pushed me the other way, face down onto the bed. Somehow my bra and panties had vanished. I felt him moving on top of me and gasped when he entered. "Shhh," he whispered in my ear. He reached one arm underneath me to raise me up and turn my head so he could kiss me. My tongue licked across his fangs as he pulled his head up. He pushed in harder and I cried out in anticipation, "Eric, now!" His fangs slid into my back, and he sucked hard. I faintly remember his hand clamping over my mouth as I came. He shuttered all over, his mouth still pressed to my back. I tasted blood on his fingers and realized I must have bitten down, too. His body relaxed on top of me. He kissed and licked my back before rolling us back onto our sides. He wrapped an arm across my stomach and held me close to him.

"Eric," I said.

"Shhh," he said, nuzzling my neck.

"Honestly, why bother. Even the guard dogs at the gate are enjoying the soundtrack," Pam said from the doorway.

"Pam!" I shouted, pulling the covers in tight around me and trying to slide away from Eric. He wasn't having it. "What are you doing here?"

"Sookie, where is your southern hospitality? Is that any way to greet a house guest?" she criticized.

"House guest?"

"Lover, Pam will be staying with us for a few nights," Eric said. Then he released me and got out of bed, buck naked. He went to the dresser for clothes, and Pam's gaze momentarily followed him before turning back to me with anticipation.

"Out!" I commanded her. With a whole lot of satisfaction and a small twinge of guilt, I watched Pam's shocked expression as she staggered backwards up the stairs and, presumably, out of the house.

"Sookie," Eric said, giving me a scold suitable for a child throwing her toys to the floor in a tantrum. "Invite her back, please." Pick them up, please. I glared right back at him.

I got out of bed and recovered my clothes. Once dressed, I went upstairs and opened the front door. Pam was looking sulky and annoyed, but not overly angry. "Come in, Pam," I said in a less than inviting voice. Then I went into the kitchen and put two bottles in the microwave. I preheated the oven, too, to make myself a pizza. Eric came upstairs, not having bothered with a shirt, and he and Pam sat on the stools at the kitchen counter. I handed them each a bottle and eyed them with an expectant expression.

Pam was dressed in slim pink trousers with a thin cream knit top and pink cardigan. Her long hair was expertly pinned up and I wondered if she slept with it like that and, if so, how it managed to stay so perfect. I suppose when you're dead you don't exactly toss and turn, but still.

"Well?" I asked, since my stare wasn't producing the explanation I was after.

"Sookie," Eric said, "Pam is having difficulties with her new friend. She would like to stay with us for a while."

I looked at Pam, puzzled. Then I remembered what Amelia had told me. "Parenting problems?" I asked.

"Yes," she said, and her frustration was evident in her voice. "My child is becoming willful."

"So, since Eric did such a stellar job raising you, you figured you'd get some parenting advice?" I tried not to laugh as I said it. Tried and failed. Pam glared.

"Sookie," Eric said, "Instructing a new vampire is not an easy thing and should not be taken lightly. A new vampire is prone to extreme emotions and extreme reactions. Many do not survive their first year." Only the pained look on Pam's face could keep my face straight.

"So, what's Jamie doing that's so bad?" I asked, trying to sound concerned.

"Jamie has decided she has a preference for men," Pam said. I felt a smile edging up the corners of my mouth and tried to pull it straight. I knew that vampires often had a sexual relationship with their makers at first, and also that it didn't usually last long. It sounded like Pam was a little disgruntled that the honeymoon had ended so quickly.

"So, she's started dating someone else?"

Eric smiled behind Pam's back. "No, I said she likes _men_. She had six of them at the nest yesterday. At once." I never pegged Pam as the monogamous type. Just as a giggle was bubbling up from my chest, she added "The stains in the carpet are permanent, and I had to have the painters come back. No one should live with red walls." That brought me up short.

I'd thought "had" meant "had sex with", but apparently it was "had" in the vampire sense. I swallowed.

"She must learn moderation," Eric said in a serious tone. "Such mistakes are less tolerated now that we are in the open."

"Jamie refuses synthetic blood," Pam explained, "and her other appetites are just as insatiable." Pam looked almost pleased and a little aroused at the second part. Her fangs even showed a little when she smiled. I would never understand vampires.

I suggested the two of them go to the living room while I pulled my pizza from the oven. This wasn't dinner time conversation, at least not for me. Once I'd eaten and rinsed my plate, I went over to join them on the sofas. Eric held his arms out to me and I obligingly climbing onto his lap. Pam rolled her eyes at us.

"So, what's the plan for the little one?" I asked.

"She is being punished," Eric said. "She will be chained in silver for one week." Vampire time-out, I suppose. "Since Pam's attachment is still so strong, she will stay with us until the sentence is finished."

Before I could think of what to say to that, Eric whipped his phone up to his ear. "I am here," he said. I hadn't even heard it ring. Eric went tense. "Call Ludwig," he said before hanging up.

Pam was on the alert, I suppose in response to Eric. "We must go," he said. I wasn't sure if that "we" included me or not, but I went along anyway. We piled into Eric's Corvette and flew to Pam's old house, the one we'd met at the night of the Witch War.

There was a small gathering of vampires on the lawn and one human. I thought at first that Eric was going to drive over them when he jumped the curb, but the car screeched to a halt four inches in front of Rasul. I noticed Rasul didn't even flinch.

"Report," Eric commanded in a commanding voice that sent chills through me, and not in a good way. Before Rasul answered, I saw what they were crowded around, or rather, who. Indira was convulsing on the ground, foam coming from her mouth.

"It's unclear what happened," Rasul said. "Indira and Natalia were having an argument. The two left together, we thought to argue outside. We heard Indira's moans not long after and came out. Natalie was gone and Indira was like this." He pointed to the ground.

"Where is the girl?" Eric asked.

"Gone. We sent Gregory over to her house, but she wasn't there."

"Heidi," Eric said.

"She is here too often. I can't isolate anything to follow," Heidi replied. She was staring at Indira with a mixture of horror and fear. When vampires are afraid, things are really, really bad.

Dr. Ludwig arrived next. She bent over Indira while Eric, Pam and Rasul held a huddle on the porch. "She has the illness," Dr. Ludwig announced. "Have you tried giving her blood?"

"No." Rasul answered. He gave a nod to the stocky vampire, Gregory I supposed, standing next to the human girl, and the two approached. The girl looked absolutely terrified when she saw Indira. She was about to scream when Rasul caught her gaze. "Look at me," he said in a soothing voice. He was glamouring the poor girl. I made a motion to interfere right before Pam appeared in front of me. She shook her head slightly as she pushed me back away from the scene.

The vampires watched in earnest as Rasul bit the girl's arm and held it over Indira's mouth. The shaking vampire froze for a moment, and then expelled a fountain of blood, soaking the three of them and every blade of grass within a two foot radius. I was glad Pam had pushed us out of range.

"Vampire blood?" Dr. Ludwig suggested. It became apparent to me that we were resorting to the guess-and-check method of doctoring, not that I had any better suggestions.

Rasul, covered in regurgitated blood, bit into his own wrist next and fed Indira, who now lay still on the ground. Another blood fountain crossed that idea off the list. Indira looked white as a sheet. Her skin had a wet sheen, as if she were sweating, but vampires don't sweat.

I was worried, but I wasn't the only one. Vampire expressions are usually hard to discern, but not now. Every vampire I could see had their eyes fixed on Indira and wide with fear. I knew that the fear I was feeling wasn't only my own, but Eric was also enraged. After a moment of silence, Indira's body arched violently and then she went completely still. She looked dead, or deader.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Dr. Ludwig bent over Indira to examine her more closely. The hobbit-sized doctor shook her head in amazement. "I've never seen the like of it," she said. "Pick her up," she ordered no one in particular. "I need to take her to my clinic for observation." Eric flicked his gaze to Gregory who then lifted Indira with some difficulty. Her body seemed to weigh him down, which was an oddity in and of itself.

After they left, Rasul went inside to clean himself off. Eric had told me before that the vampire flu, or whatever this was, wasn't contagious, but I didn't want Rasul, or Eric or Pam, taking any chances. Apparently they all agreed. Pam sparked back to life and disappeared around the house, reappearing a moment later with a small tin. She pour the contents – gasoline from the smell – onto the blood soaked grass. As she backed away, Eric tossed a lit match onto the spot and the ground went up in flames. I watched the firelight dancing in his eyes. He looked up and met my stare. I could feel his worry and his anger. For a moment, I thought I could hear him in my head, but the thoughts were snarly and hard to make out.

In a voice so low I couldn't hear, Eric gave orders to the other vampires, Heidi and another I'd seen before at Fangtasia. He turned to look back and me, and said to Pam, "Take her home." I didn't particularly like being ordered around like that, but this was a vampire matter so I understood. I climbed back into the Corvette, followed immediately by Pam. We made the drive home in total silence.

"He has to stop this," Pam said as we walked into the house. I looked at her, hoping to get some clue as to what she meant. "He has to find the cause of the illness and stop it," she said.

"He will," I said with more confidence than I felt. Eric was very clever, but he was no doctor. I wasn't sure how he was suppose to figure this one out.

"It will cost him his kingdom if he fails," Pam said, her voice grim, "and his life."

She walked to the kitchen to heat up a blood for herself, leaving me shaken by the door. I knew this was serious, but I didn't know it was that serious. "This isn't his fault, though," I argued. "He didn't start the virus."

"Someone must be held accountable, and it will be Eric. He is the newest ruler and the illness originated in his kingdom."

I couldn't think about that, not now. Pam removed the bottle from the microwave and gave it a shake. After a few long minutes of silence, I decided I needed to talk about something else, anything else. "When did you get in, anyway?" I asked her.

"Last night, just before dawn."

"Oh."

Before I had time to think up another conversational dead end, Eric returned. Pam put another blood in the microwave for him, but Eric strode past us into his office. He came out a few minutes later. Pam handed him the heated bottle. We both stared at him. For once, it seemed Eric didn't have an answer to our unspoken question.

"It's getting worse," Pam said after a while.

"Yes," Eric responded, taking another long drink.

"Is she . . ." I started to ask if Indira was dead, finally dead.

"No," Eric said before I'd finished asking. "Though she may as well be." I heard glass shatter and saw the remnants of the bottle of True Blood scattered on the counter and floor around Eric. He cursed in some foreign language and shook the remaining bits of glass out of his hand.

I walked around the counter to him, carefully avoiding stepping on the larger shards. I took his hand in mine. I picked out the small bits of glass and then kissed his palm. Then offered up my lips to him, now dabbled in a mix of synthetic blood and his own. He kissed me lightly at first, but then the kiss deepened. I could feel his need coming through the bond. I could hear in his thoughts his outrage that one of his subjects would die while he stood by and watch. Eric leaned hard into me, pushing me back into the counter. I gasped, and he pulled me forward. Next thing I knew we were in the living room, and he was kneeling behind me licking my back where the glass had cut the skin. He turned me around and pulled me into a tight embrace, his head pressed firmly into my stomach.

I looked around and noticed that, in a rare moment of tactfulness, Pam had left us alone. I stroked Eric's hair. "Did you send Bubba to watch after Hunter?" I asked.

"Yes," he said.

_Thank you,_ I told him silently, and he heard me.

Eric stood, lifting me with him as he did. He carried me to the couch and moved on top of me. He kissed me slowly, his arm that was wrapped around the back of my waist pulling me up into him. I could feel his arousal, both through the bond and his pants, but he just kissed me over and over for several minutes. This time, I felt his phone buzz, though it took me a confused second to figure out that was what it was. With a reluctant sigh, he lowered me down and placed the phone to his ear. He hung up a few seconds later.

"Pam," he said as if she were standing right behind him. A moment later, she was. Right, vampire hearing.

Eric moved off of me, pulling us to a sitting position as he did. "Heidi found the girl. Go to her house and see what you can find."

"I've never been to Natalia's house," Pam said. "I'll need an invitation. Is she there?"

"No. You will not need an invitation." I looked at Eric, obviously confused. "She is dead."

"Did Heidi . . .?" I asked.

"No, lover. She was dead when Heidi found her. Pam."

"Yes, Master." Pam left at vampire speed.

Eric and I sat in silence for a long while. He looked deep in thought. I stood to leave and he let me go. It was late and the events of the night had exhausted me, so I got ready for bed. As I was climbing under the covers, I heard Pam upstairs talking with Eric. I drifted off into an uneasy sleep. Sometime before dawn I felt Eric come to bed. He snuggled in close, wrapping me securely in his arms, but he didn't try to wake me.

I woke up the next day tangled in Eric's limbs. Somehow our hair was tangled together, too. I looked at him, hoping he'd look peaceful in his sleep, but he just looked dead. I got a jolt when I remembered Indira's lifeless form the night before, but I knew Eric was fine, just dead for the day.

Amelia called me just after noon. I was glad she'd gotten in early since I had to be at work by 4pm and wanted to have time to talk. She arrived at the house a little after 1pm, and she wasn't alone.

Alcide had a sheepish grin on his face as he followed Amelia into the house. I directed them to the sun room and brought out a pitcher of iced tea and three glasses. Alcide and Amelia sat on the wicker sofa, rather close to one another I noticed, so I took the chair beside them. I tried not to listen to Amelia's thoughts, but she was broadcasting as loud as ever. Yep, they were definitely a couple. If I hadn't already seen Alcide in the buff a few times, I'd never have been able to keep a straight face at the racy thoughts racing through Amelia's mind as Alcide slid his arm around her.

"What the news?" I asked.

"Well, we looked all through Louis's apartment, and nothing much was missing. The place was ransacked pretty good, but it didn't look like whoever it was took much. We could tell there was one spell book missing, because of the gap in the shelves, but that was all. His ingredients were still there, and everything else of value was just left alone. The coven thinks it was vampires, because they found his crossbow and silver chain, but I don't think so. I mean, Louis hated vampires, no way he would invite one in. And he knew better than to look them in the eye to be glamoured. Besides, he must have set up wards to keep the undead out."

"If it wasn't vampires who took him, then what do you think happened?" I'd noticed Amelia was acting on the assumption that both Louis and Octavia had been kidnapped, not killed, so I was going right along with her, though I wasn't as certain.

"I just don't know. But Octavia's place, it was still locked up tight and all her wards were in place. No one had been in there before I arrived."

"The other witches didn't go in to look for clues about who took her?" I asked.

"They couldn't," Amelia said. "I was the only one who could go in when Octavia wasn't there. She only made that exception for all the times I left things at her house or when she wanted to send me back to get something during a meeting."

"That's strange. So, she must have gone after Louis. You weren't able to find her with a locator spell?"

"There's some kind of interference, like someone is blocking the signal. It's definitely a magical barrier, which makes me think it must be a witch casting a spell of some sort."

"We think witches from another coven took them, and tried to blame it on the vampires," Alcide said, summarizing the conversation so far.

"That's about the best theory I've got right now," Amelia said. She sighed heavily. I noticed Alcide squeeze her hand in comfort. I couldn't help but smile at that, though this was no time for smiles.

"What do we do now?" I asked.

"I was able to pin down the general area where Octavia is being held, and it's within a 30 mile radius of Shreveport. I'm going to try casting spells from here and see if I can pin things down a little better. Alcide is checking with his contacts, to see if there's been a lot of Wiccan activity in the area recently. A spell as strong as this one, someone must have sensed the magic." Amelia looked a little better when she was planning action. "And I checked with Pam, too, though she's been pretty preoccupied with Jamie." Alcide made a disgusted face at that. Luckily, Amelia didn't see it.

"Well, Jamie isn't all Pam's focused on. Y'all heard about this vamp flu that's going around, right?" They both nodded. "It's getting pretty serious now, and it's got all the vampires anxious. But I'll ask Pam and Eric to keep an ear out, just in case."

We chatted a little more about who all we might check with, and Amelia told us about some spells and such she thought might come in handy. When the conversation had a bit of a lull, Amelia got a guilty look on her face and turned to Alcide. Then he said, "Sookie, Amelia's agreed to make a new batch of the potion. We're having a pack meeting on Friday. Will you come?"

I sighed. I'd read this request in his mind the minute he walked in the door. I didn't really want to, but I knew it was the right thing to do, and I wanted to help him out if I could. "I'll be there," I said. "Any chance you can make it without the hangover?" I asked Amelia.

Once we'd covered all the details of what to do about the witch hunt and the pack meeting, it was about time for me to go to work. I walked them to the door, and as they left I listened in to Alcide. I know Gran would have had a few words to say about it, but Amelia's a good friend and I just couldn't help myself. I felt his affection for her pretty clearly, and that was enough for me. I was happy they'd found each other and hoping it would last as I got into my black slacks and white Merlotte's polo shirt.

Holly briefed me on her tables when I arrived. Hoyt was waiting for her, as usual, which gave me the chance to thank him in advance for helping with tomorrow's move. It was as slow as usual for a Monday afternoon, but business picked up a little as the evening wore on. I had my shield as firmly in place as my automatic smile while I served drinks to all the regulars. Sam was working the bar, and he looked about as relaxed as I'd seen him in months. I gave him a genuine smile as I asked for two pitchers of Bud, and he gave me one back along with the beer.

All in all, I was in a pretty good mood when Yvonne walked in an hour before closing. I didn't see her right away since I was tending to four college boys who were getting a really early start on the weekend, or maybe hadn't finished with the last one. She sat down at a table in my section, and I almost dropped the basket of onion rings on Catfish's head when I saw her. She was once again dressed in perfectly pressed sexy but business-like attire. I seethed with anger and jealously, not an attractive combination on me, I'm afraid. Sam must have noticed my reaction, because next thing I knew he was pulling me off for a sidebar.

"What's wrong, Sook?" he asked.

I took a deep breath to steady myself. "Nothing, I hope, Sam," I told him, "but I'll let you know." With that, I strapped my crazy smile back on my face and went over to her.

"What can I get for you?" I said in an overly bubbly voice. Though I wasn't really trying, I could tell that I couldn't get a clear read off of her mind, even though she was definitely one hundred percent human.

"I know it's awful to come here like this," she began. Gee, you think? "But I need to talk to you." She leaned a little closer to me and dropped her voice, "away from _them_." I was pretty sure "them" meant "vampires".

"What about?" I asked coldly, the smile gone from my face.

"Is there somewhere we can go?" she asked, looking around as if all the residents of Bon Temps were vampire informants.

"Why would I want to go anywhere with you?"

"I know what you must think of me, and I'm sorry I was so rude the other night, but we really need to talk. Can I meet you after work, at least?" Rude didn't even begin to cover it, but her voice sounded urgent and I could read her thoughts well enough to know she didn't mean me any harm.

"I'm off at eleven," I told her and walked off to the kitchen. By the time I came back, she was gone. The rest of the evening I was hoping she wouldn't be back, but it was a vain hope. Even though I'd read that she had no intention of hurting me, I told Sam the story and asked if he'd keep an ear out, just in case.

"She stabbed Eric Northman," Sam said, obviously impressed, "with silver." He shook his head. "That woman's either got a death wish or nerves of steel."

"He's a good man, Sam," I said in a critical tone.

"He's not a man, Sookie," Sam said gently, "But I know he does right by you. I'll stick around in the back until she's gone."

With as good a "Thank you" as I could muster in my defensive state, I went back to the dining room to wait for Yvonne. She came back in at 11pm sharp.

"Well?" I said, putting as much impatience into that one word as I could.

"I assume he told you about us," Yvonne said.

"Not really. From what I gather, there isn't much to tell." I knew it was heartless, but I wasn't feeling too warm towards Yvonne after our first encounter. I sensed her anger and grief at my words and felt a surge of guilt. This was a person in pain, after all. Even if she'd tried to share that pain with my Viking, I still owed her basic human compassion.

"You may think Eric loves you or needs you, but in the end we're just food for them. Vampires aren't capable of feeling love, not like humans. They're evil, selfish creatures, and they'll only bring you pain." I could hear in her mirky mind that she really meant what she was saying, and also that she was trying to save me from her pain. Despite my own feelings towards Yvonne, I couldn't help but be moved by her compassion, especially when mine was so noticeably lacking.

"I'm sorry that he hurt you so much," I said, and I tried my best to mean it. "I know what it's like to feel used by someone you loved. But whatever happened between you and Eric, that's got nothing to do with me and nothing to do with my relationship with him."

"You don't have a relationship with him," she said, sounding both compassionate and condescending at the same time. "He's a vampire. He doesn't have relationships with human, not as equals. Do you know what he did to me? I loved him and gave him everything I had to give. I gave my body, my blood and my heart. After he'd used me up, after he'd had his fill of making love to me and drinking me, he passed me off to one of his friends like I was a used car that wasn't worth the maintenance anymore. With no warning, no hint that I'd done something to displease him, he told me I had a new _master_ and sent me off with . . ." her voice started trailing off.

I could see the moment replayed in her mind as Eric dismissed her, for good. I could feel her pain as she remembered it with perfect clarity, the way you do with those few defining moments in your life. Watching Eric in her memory hurt, but I knew it was just her impression of him that I was seeing. I tried to think of something to say, but couldn't come up with anything. Finally, I asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

"What you did for me at the bar," she said, "I can tell you're a good person trying to do the right thing. You're just confused about what that is. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt. We aren't property to be passed around. And whatever it is he's after with this charade he has going, it will be bad for all of us, not just you. You need to end it now, before it's too late."

I saw in her head how she wanted me to end it, and it was with the end of a long wooden stake. Only her sincerity at wanting to help me kept me from attacking her right there on the spot.

"Just because he never loved you, doesn't mean he isn't capable of love. He's capable of more than you can possibly image." I was bearing down on her petite figure in a menacing way. "But if you every take silver or wood to my _husband_ again, I won't have to stop him from killing you, because I'll do it myself." I turned and stormed into the back before I said or did something I would regret. Sam had the sense to leave me be for a while until I'd calmed down. Unfortunately, Eric did not.

I put the phone to my ear but didn't trust myself to speak just yet. I knew he could hear my breathing anyway.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Where are you?"

"Running errands," he said. His voice was tense. "Do you need me?"

I thought about that for a few seconds. "Yes, but it can wait," I said. Eric had a lot on his plate at the moment, and dealing with my encounter with his ex wasn't exactly top priority. "I'll see you at home?" For some reason, I wasn't sure.

"I look forward to nothing else," he said.

It was past midnight by the time I got home. I felt dirty after my conversation with Yvonne, so I took a shower. I knew she was wrong about Eric, but part of me was still shaken by what she told me. I tried reading a book in bed while I waited for him to come home from wherever he was. Eventually, I fell asleep alone.

I wasn't alone when I woke up. Not seeing Eric for an entire night had me in an antsy state, though the note attached to a gorgeous lilac silk gown hanging on the outside of my closet door helped: _My wife, I'm sorry I got in so late this morning – regrettably too late to wake you. Wear this to dinner with me this evening, and I will spend the rest of the night making it up to you. –E._

The dress was stunning, of course. Everything Eric had ever gotten for me was top of the line and perfect. I noticed a pearl colored wrap folded on top of the dresser next to the closet. Eric loved to have as much of my neck as possible exposed, and this dress certainly fit that bill, but he'd been thoughtful enough to know I'd freeze in the short walk between the car and the door.

Putting aside thoughts of our evening out, I pulled on some old jeans and a big sweatshirt to get ready for moving day. I called up Jason to make sure he was awake and remembered, but with Michele living with him there really was no need. I just couldn't get used to this more responsible Jason.

I arrived at their house in Red Ditch and saw Remy carting a few boxes to load into his car. He stopped to greet me as I got out of my car, and Hunter came running through the screen door to tackle me. Jason and Hoyt pulled up not long after, and I made introductions. I could tell that Remy was a lot more comfortable with Jason than he ever would be with me. Apart from the fact that everyone likes Jason, he was normal, as far as Remy knew, and that put him at ease.

While the boys loaded the trucks, I stayed inside with Hunter packing up the last few items from the kitchen while he colored in a book on the floor.

_Hunter, have you ever talked to the vampire?_ I asked him silently, in case anyone came in.

_He's funny,_ Hunter answered back in the same way. He giggled as he recounted some of his adventures playing outside with Bubba, and the sound of his happiness warmed my heart. I was a little nervous when he told me about their search for cats, but Hunter didn't seem to know exactly why Bubba was so fond of them or what he did when he caught one.

_He eats cats?_ Well, he hadn't known until now. Way to go, Sookie. At least Hunter seemed to think that was cool rather than creepy.

_Hunter, Bubba is still going to visit at night after y'all get settled in Bon Temps,_ I told him. _But you can't tell anyone else about him, okay? He has to be your secret friend. Can you do that?_ He promised he wouldn't say a word to anyone.

Jason came in then and said, "Hey sis, kiddo, we're all packed up here. Y'all ready to drive over?"

Hunter was excited to ride with Uncle Jason in his truck, and I could tell that Claude was going to have serious competition for favorite uncle status.

When we got to Sam's rental, Remy did a walk through to check the place out. It was a little larger than their previous house, but the layout was pretty much the same. Hunter came up to me, tugging on my arm, while the unpacking began.

"Will Bubba eat Uncle Jason?" Hunter asked, his eyes wide with worry.

"No, sweetie. He won't hurt Jason. Why would you think that?" Then I saw it in his head. He'd read Jason's thoughts on the way over, and Jason was thinking about his run during last week's full moon. Now Hunter knew that Jason was a werepanther, too. I couldn't bring myself to ask him to keep that a secret as well, so I steeled myself to talk with Remy when we took a break in the afternoon.

Remy took the news surprisingly well. Actually, I was a little offended that he was so accepting of Jason's otherness when he was clearly creeped out by mine. I shrugged it off, though, as I tried to unpack the necessities into the house. Since Remy and Hunter didn't have too much stuff, we were finished with the move before 5pm. Michele called to check up on Jason, and he relayed the invitation for a barbecue at his house on the weekend. It was hard to tell if Remy or Hunter was more excited by the idea. I gathered the isolation that comes with raising a telepath was weighing on Remy more than even he realized. I gave Hunter a big hug before I left, and reminded him to keep Bubba a secret. The drive home was a happy one as I thought about how much easier life was going to be for Remy and Hunter, provided we could find a way to get Agent Lattesta to back off.

Two hours later, I was walking in to Bites with Eric for our private opening. I'd made it home in time to shower and get dressed before he woke. Of course, once he saw me in the thin silk that hugged my many curves in all the right ways, the dress came off and he helped himself to an appetizer. Eventually we made it out of the house, though I was tempted to suggest we just stay in for the night.

The restaurant looked perfect. The interior was soft and warm, like a quaint country house. We took a table in the middle of the empty restaurant, and as soon as we were seated, a waiter came out to greet us. Since the restaurant wasn't opened to the public until tomorrow, the chefs had made special meals for us, but I asked to see the menu anyway, out of curiosity.

The "human" side looked like your typical upscale French restaurant menu, with lots of ingredients I couldn't pronounce and hadn't read on my Word of the Day calendars. The "vampire" side was much more interesting. Apart from the most popular lines of synthetic bloods, True Blood and Life Support and even the much more expensive Royalty, they also had a donor list. I looked up at Eric, "They have real blood?" I asked, shocked.

"Of course," he said, smiling a very Eric smile at me. His expression made me examine the menu more closely.

"Fairy blood!" I shouted.

Just then our first courses arrived. Mine was a butternut squash soup, and Eric had some sort of blood served in a bowl. Very classy. Once the waiter, a Were I noticed, left again, I said, "Eric, are you serious? Are you really serving Claude on the menu!"

"No, Sookie," he said. "Claude's blood is much too potent. We would have a very difficult time maintaining order if we served pure fairy blood, even with the Weres on staff. The effects of true fairy blood are very . . . intoxicating." For a moment his eyes shined with the memory of poor Colman, the fairy Eric had drained almost a year ago on my front lawn.

"Then who?" I asked, bringing him out of his trance.

"Dermot."

"What? Eric, he's hardly stable. Is that really a good idea?"

"He needed the money. Apparently he is more human than I thought. Besides, he only needs to donate a small vial each week given the dilution."

"Have you had any?" I asked. I was morbidly curious if my great-uncle tasted like me.

"No, lover," Eric said, reaching over to take my hand. "My tastes are ruined, even for that." He kissed my hand just above my wedding ring and ran his fangs across my knuckles. The suggestion sent a warm shiver up from deep inside me.

Once I was over that, Eric asked how the move went. I filled him in on the boring details, and he acted genuinely interested. "And I never told you how my visit with Amelia went," I said. He nodded for me to continue. "She and Alcide are an item now. She's even helping him make the shaman brew for the pack meeting on Friday." I certainly had his undivided attention now.

"There is a pack meeting? Why?"

"Did you know I was their shaman?"

"Of course. But this is serious, Sookie. Why has Alcide called the meeting?"

"I know it's serious, Eric, and you should have told me what you know." I could feel my anger rising up, and I started thinking of all the reasons I had to be mad at Eric. I was mad at him for not telling me things, for using my position with the pack to manipulate Alcide, for however he had treated Yvonne. I knew I was really angry with him for acting like a vampire, which is what all that amounted to. I was over that impulse by now, but somehow I wanted to be mad at him. I had to be.

I pushed my venison away and stood up from the table. "You knew I was their stupid witchdoctor and you didn't tell me. You just blackmailed Alcide into helping you without even letting me know I was the cause. And you should have told me you sent Bubba to watch Hunter!" I was starting on a tirade and it wouldn't stop. I knew I wasn't mad at Eric for sending Bubba to Hunter. In fact, I was glad, and a little touched, that he'd thought of it. But I said it just the same.

Eric sat across from me taking in everything I threw at him with a curious expression on his face. I felt my stomach rumble and wrapped my arms around myself in support. "And how could you pass off a person like that? Like she's a car you want to upgrade? How could you treat someone like . . . that . . ." My stomach was all in knots, and I bent forward against the table from the discomfort.

Eric was beside me in a flash, uncertain what to do. "Sookie," he said, his voice full of concern.

I knew I was going to be sick, but I only had a second to register that before I fell to the floor and expelled every bit of the marvelous dinner I'd just eaten. I heard Eric shouting commands somewhere in the distance and felt his arms around me holding me up. I had just enough energy to hope I hadn't thrown up all over him before everything went black.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

I felt cool hands on my forehead when I came back to. "Eric, what happened?" I asked.

"He isn't here. Eric went off to set heads rolling and left me to be your chamber maid." Pam's tone made it clear how she felt about that particular division of labor.

I opened my eyes. I was lying in bed wearing a thin nylon nightgown. Pam was sitting on the edge of the bed, dressed in red latex, with a wet cloth in her hands. "What happened?" I asked, not too concerned about who answered me at the moment.

"You have food poisoning," she said. "Apparently humans are susceptible to food borne illnesses from under cooked meat." She sounded like she was reading that off of WebMD.

My stomach rumbled again. "Pam, can you get a bucket?"

After I'd managed to keep down a glass of water for several minutes, Pam helped me to the bathroom to brush my teeth. I went back to the bed and propped the pillows against the headboard so I could at least sit up. Pam sat on the bed beside me. I asked her to talk to me, about anything, to keep my mind off my queasiness, so she told me about Jamie.

"Why can't you be in New Orleans while she's being, uh, punished?" I asked.

"A new vampire has a very strong bond with her maker," she explained. "It's similar to the bond between you and Eric, though not quite that strong. The closer we are physically, the more intense the connection. Since she cannot feed during her sentence, I feel her hunger. If I were close to her, it would challenge my self control."

"When can she feed again?"

"I will go back on Friday and release her. She will have to feed without killing or the punishment will continue. Spare the rod, spoil the child," she chanted. I wondered if Pam had been reading parenting books, and if they wrote them for vampires now.

"Is it hard for you?" I knew that was a personal question, but Pam and I were friends, so I thought it was safe to ask.

"Very," she said. "I am quite fond of her already." I could hear the affection in Pam's voice.

Pam refilled my water glass – "dehydration will exacerbate your condition" – just as the doorbell rang. We have two doorbells, actually. One for the gate and one for the house. This time, one of the guards at the gate was calling about a visitor. Pam pushed the intercom.

"Mrs. Northman, a vampire named Heidi is here to see you. She says she has information regarding the vampire Bill."

I immediately looked more alert. Pam sighed, "I'm coming," she said into the intercom. Pam left to talk with Heidi, leaving me alone to think about what news she might have. With everything that had happened over the past few days, I hardly had time to think about Bill. I was glad Heidi was still looking, though. Pam rolled her eyes at me when she returned.

"Really, Sookie, you should get over your obsession with Bill Compton. Eric is a thousand times the vampire he will ever be in every respect."

"Pam," I said, shocked at the implication she was making, "I'm not obsessed with Bill. I just want to know what happened to him. Where's Heidi?"

"I sent her away."

"What? Why? Did she tell you the news about Bill at least?"

"No. There's nothing to tell. She wanted you to accompany her on some lead. I told her you were too ill to chase after a missing vampire. Besides, it's her job to find Bill, not yours." Pam was clearly not interested in the outcome of Heidi's search. That bothered me a little, but then I knew Pam was never particularly fond of Bill, and she definitely had bigger concerns on her plate.

Pam's phone rang, and I heard Eric's voice on the other end of the line when she answered it. Some of my queasiness subsided. "She expelled more of the offending animal," Pam explained. "It was utterly charming. I'm so glad to be able to serve you in this dignified capacity." I couldn't discern Eric's words, but between the bond and Pam's expression I got the gist of them pretty clearly. "Yes, master," she said, before hanging up. "He would like me to ask if there is anything I can do to make you more comfortable until he returns," Pam said.

"Want to paint my toenails?" I asked, wiggling my toes at her. Pam scowled.

I was feeling much better and had even managed to keep down a glass of gatorade by the time Eric came home. His hair was windblown from the flight and his skin was flushed, though that wasn't from the flight. I wondered if we had any kitchen staff left at the restaurant for tomorrow's grand opening.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Fine. Just an upset stomach, I guess," I said. Pam moved over and Eric sat on the bed with us. Just one big happy family.

"Eric," I said, "I'm sorry for the things I said, before I got sick, I don't know what that was about but I didn't mean it. Any of it."

"It's fine, lover." He stroked his hand across my cheek.

"You didn't actually kill anyone at the restaurant, right?" I asked as gently as I could. I didn't really want to get worked up over anything in my current condition, but I had to ask.

"No. Though, we will need to hire a new sous-chef." He didn't look even a little sorry.

"It's fortunate, actually," Pam chimed in. "If this happened to a customer tomorrow night, the business would have flopped and there would have been a very embarrassing law suit." Eric gave her a stare that would have had any other vampire cowering at his feet. Pam, however, knew where the line was with Eric and loved to dance on the edge of it.

"Happy I could help," I said, trying to ease the tension. I felt my stomach rumble again. The vampires both turned to look at it as if they were trying to understand what it said. Pam looked a little nervous, worried, I supposed, that I'd need the bucket again. I waved my hand a little, "I'm fine," I said.

"Sookie, you must tell me about the pack meeting," Eric said.

"Oh. Alcide thinks someone in his pack is giving information to the Fellowship of the Sun. He wants me to drink that shaman mojo juice again and find out who it is. It's really no big deal."

"This is set for Friday?" he asked, "At night?"

"I didn't ask what time, but I guess so."

Eric pulled out his cell phone. "Alcide, it's Eric . . . I will attend the pack meeting with Sookie on Friday . . . She is my bonded and my wife. If you require her services, then you will tolerate my presence . . . Very well." He hung up. I could feel Eric's agitation, and it wasn't helping me relax.

"Eric," I said, "Can you think of snow or something?"

He smiled at me, knowing what I wanted, and his mood calmed. He placed a hand gently on my stomach, but that only triggered his lust reflex. "Bucket," I said. Thank goodness for vampire speed.

It was a rough night for all of us, but Eric didn't complain. Pam, on the other hand, complained enough for both of them, so I suppose it balanced out. I slept off and on. Eric and Pam stayed in the room most of the night having whispered conversations that I didn't even try to hear.

As I was waking up in the morning or possibly late afternoon, I felt Eric indenting the bed to my left and, presumably, Pam to my right. The covers were completely discarded since I had been too feverish to keep them on. I wondered briefly why Pam had stayed in bed with us, when I felt her move beside me. My eyes flew open to find Claude in bed with me. His hand was reaching across me to land on Eric's rear. I pushed his arm away and shoved the fairy off the bed. He hit the floor with a satisfying thud.

"Claude," I mumbled in a groggy voice, "What are you doing here?"

"You're sick," he said, now standing beside the bed with his eyes fixed on the naked Viking on the other side of me. Thank goodness Eric was lying on his stomach.

"Out," I ordered him. I couldn't quite muster the energy I wanted behind the command.

Claude broke his trance and looked down at me. "Would you like me to help you up?" He didn't look like this was top on his to do list, but he did seem sincere in wanting to help. I slowly swung my legs over the edge of the bed and asked Claude to fetch my robe from the bathroom. I looked at the clock beside the bed. It was already three in the afternoon.

Slowly, and with many backward glances at Eric, we made our way up the stairs and into the kitchen. I figured I better get something in my stomach. I looked in the refrigerator to see if there was any more gatorade. I found the kettle and pulled it out. Confused as to how and why the kettle had ended up in the fridge, I opened the top to fill it, thinking tea might be nice, but the water splashed out. I looked inside and saw the kettle was full of . . . _Jell-O_? Eric or Pam, or maybe both, must have tried to make Jell-O for me last night. Since Eric had never cooked a thing in his 1000+ years and Pam hadn't lifted a finger in the kitchen in about 300, I thought they made a descent show of it. I took a spoon from the drawer and sat in the sunroom with Claude and my kettle of lime green Jell-O.

"What happened?" Claude asked.

"I ate a bad deer. Hey, did you know Dermot is selling blood to Eric?"

"Yes," he sounded properly repulsed at the idea. "You'll be fine," Claude said, more to himself than me. I gave him a questioning look. "Last night, I wasn't as sure."

"It's a funny feeling," I said, "hanging around with all you supes who live forever, all worried about poor little mortal me." Not funny ha-ha, but strange. They were all going to outlive me by many lifetimes.

"I won't live forever," Claude said, "Just long enough."

"Well, compared to me, that's more or less forever."

Claude shrugged and looked around, as if trying to find inspiration for a conversation change. "This is a nice room. You should spend more time in here."

The sun room had three walls of glass and two large skylights. When it was too cold to lie out on the lawn, as it was now since we were well in to November, this was where I came to read or lounge about. Claude had indicated to me before that, since I was part sky fae, the sun would make me feel better and maybe even be a magical cure for different ailments. Whether it was the sun or Claude's company or just that I was feeling better on my own, as my spoon scraped the inside of the kettle I realized my appetite might actually be coming back.

I went into the kitchen to soak the kettle and refill my glass of water. When I returned, Claude was coming back from somewhere as well, though it wasn't the direction of the bathroom or the stairs. "Where'd you go?" I asked.

"Just having a look around, Cousin," Claude said. I didn't believe that for a second. "You've never taken me on a tour." He made an attempt to look hurt, but it wasn't a convincing one.

"Technically, I haven't invited you over yet," I pointed out. "But that doesn't seem to stop you for popping in whenever you feel like it." I herded him back to the sun room and lay on the couch. "How come you can do that, anyway? I thought you couldn't just appear when there were vampires around."

"This is your house, and it's day," he said with a shrug. Then his expression turned serious. "You should keep the bond strong."

"What? Claude, this is hardly your business. Hey, how did you know we were letting it get weaker anyway?"

"It's important."

"Is that why you can just appear even when Eric is here?" I asked. Getting straight answers from a fairy is all but impossible, but it's still fun to try.

"You look like you're feel better," he said, effectively ending that line of conversation. He stood as if to leave.

"I'll be fine. Thanks for checking up." He bent to kiss my cheek. When he was at the door I realized I should probably follow him out, just in case. "Claude, we're having a barbecue at Jason's house on the weekend to welcome Remy and Hunter to the neighborhood, if you want to come. It's Saturday evening at six."

His eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. "I'll be there," he said.

"Um, Eric is coming, too," I said hesitantly. Again with the excitement in his face. "Can you try to mask your smell or something? Or keep your distance? I don't want to scare them off."

"Don't worry, Cousin, I know just the thing to wear." With that cryptic remark and wink, he left.

When I was alone again, my energetic spurt came to an abrupt end. I went back downstairs, picked up the sheets and quilt off the floor, and snuggled into bed with Eric.

It was full dark the next time I woke up. I felt Eric – I looked to make sure it was really him this time – running his fingers through my hair. He was reading in bed with my head resting against his chest. It wouldn't have worked if he didn't have such long arms.

"Thanks for the Jell-O," I said, hugging his bare chest.

"I hope we made it right. The instructions were a little vague."

"It was perfect." No need to mention they should have poured the water out of the kettle to mix it. It was the thought I was counting.

"I have to leave soon, but Pam will stay. Do you need to see a doctor?"

"No, I'll be fine. I really am feeling much better. You don't have to make Pam babysit me, either. I can always call if I need something." After a minute, I asked, "How's Indira?"

"The same," he said. I could hear the tension in his voice. "Dr. Ludwig is taking blood samples to try to analyze the illness, but so far she has discovered nothing useful."

"Do you know what happened to Indira's girlfriend, Natalia?"

"She was hit by a car. Heidi found her body six blocks away."

"Poor thing," I said. I shed a few tears for Indira and Natalia. Eric held me close to him.

Eric inhaled deeply and it was like the air was filling a very large balloon in his pants. Claude's scent must have been really strong since he was lying in the bed with us for who knows how long. I could feel Eric's deep arousal through the bond as he bent his head down to lick neck. My body let me know it was interested, but not up for the challenge just yet.

"Claude was here," I said.

"Mmmm," he said, scraping his fangs lightly across my shoulder. He gave me a quick update on how opening night was going at Bites, mostly just to keep his mouth occupied so he wouldn't bite me. A little while later he headed out. Pam went with him, and I went back to sleep.

I woke up some time in the middle of the night and felt a little hungry. I kept it simple, toast and tea, though the tea tasted faintly of lime Jell-O. I read a mystery for about an hour before I fell back asleep for the rest of the night.

In the morning, I had a message from Amelia asking how I was. I thought about it for a minute and realized I actually felt fine, just a little weak from lack of food. I called her back and we made plans to go to lunch. I took a long shower and did some stretching just to make sure I really was better. I looked Eric over and thought longingly about the romantic evening we didn't get to have. Tonight we had to go to Fangtasia to finalize the triumvirate treaty with Mississippi and Arkansas, but hopefully that wouldn't take all night. Just in case, I put on the pale yellow lingerie Eric gave me after the incident with Yvonne, which felt like a million years ago. The skirt and blouse also fit perfectly and looked great, as he knew they would. I grabbed my cranberry coat on the way out.

I half expected to see Alcide sitting with her, but Amelia was alone when I showed up. I told her all about my bout with food poisoning.

"Good thing it was just that. I heard about the vamp that worked at Fangtasia. I had no idea this flu thing was so serious," she said.

"Me either," I agreed. "Indira looked like a corpse afterwards. Eric is trying to keep it quiet, so the CDC doesn't try to interfere, but at the rate vampires are getting infected, I don't know how long he'll be able to manage that."

"Does he have any idea how it's spreading?"

"That's the weird thing, he says it isn't contagious. And it must not be, because Rasul was covered in Indira's blood, and he's just fine. There've been two other vamps sick in Area Five in the past week, according to Pam, and they didn't have anything in common as far as we can tell. I hope Dr. Ludwig can figure out a cure or vaccine or something."

"Huh," said Amelia, deep in thought. I could hear the tenor of her thoughts easily enough. She was thinking about Octavia and wondering if there could be any connection. Nothing came to mind, and she let the thought pass. I thought there might be something to it, but I didn't know what.

"So, you and Alcide?" I asked.

She grinned like a Cheshire cat. "Hey, you two never . . . did you?"

"Nope. And I'm really happy for you, Amelia. Alcide's a great guy."

She talked on for a while about staying with him at his ranch and how things were going. She tried to steer clear of giving me too much information, but her mind was flashing vivid pictures as she went. She realized it, too, when she saw me blush and turned a bit red herself.

"You really know how to make that stuff I'm suppose to drink tomorrow night?" I asked her, to move past the embarrassing moment.

"Sure, that's easy. I was thinking, too, that I could alter it a bit and try to boost your telepathy."

"No! Please don't. Just do it regular, okay?" I tried and failed not to sound nervous.

"I probably don't have time for that right now anyway. I think I may be able to crack through the barrier blocking me from Octavia. It certainly helps being closer to her. At the very least, I might be able to get a hot—cold spell going."

"Hot—cold?"

"You know, something to tell me if I move closer to her or further away. It normally takes a long time to track someone that way, but if Alcide went with me, he might be able to catch her scent once we got reasonably close."

"So you're really sure she's in Shreveport?"

"Definitely. And I know she's alive. I can feel her essence every time I cast the spell." Amelia's confidence was contagious. By the time I got back home, I was sure she'd find Octavia by the weekend, and that would be one mystery down. Friday I'd find out who was spying on Alcide's pack, so that would be two. Maybe Heidi would show back up with Bill, too. Unfortunately, the big puzzle of vampire flu was still wide open and showing no signs of being solved.

I'd eaten a full lunch with Amelia, and I was feeling completely recovered. I set about doing some chores around the house, mostly laundry and dishes. After 5pm, I called Michele to check what all she wanted me to bring for the barbecue, and then went to the store to get brownie mix. Eric had risen by the time I got back. Unfortunately, he'd also gotten dressed. That, however, was one problem I could easily solve.

I ran up to him and jumped into his arms. My legs wrapped around his waist and his arms supported me underneath. His fangs ran out even before our lips met, and he had me pressed against the living room wall by the time the kiss really got going. His hands managed to find their way under my skirt without letting me down. I gasped when his long fingers slid inside, and he took the opportunity to move his mouth to my ear, making me moan a happy sound.

"Don't you two have a room for that?" Pam asked. I went three shades of red and Eric growled, but he didn't exactly stop. I pushed his shoulders back and slowly he let me down.

"I take it our little telepath is feeling better?" Pam asked.

"Pam, don't you have work to do?" Eric said, still pressing into me.

"Yes, and so do you. You have a meeting with Betty Joe in ten minutes."

"Come on," I said. "Let's get this over with."

Eric pulled away from me with some effort. I grabbed by bag off the kitchen counter and noticed that the Word of the Day was _c__oitus interruptus__. I sighed. How almost fitting. _

The parking lot was nearly empty, which I found odd until I noticed the "Closed for Renovations" sign on the door. Eric explained it was just a ploy to boost support for Bites during it's first week. "All of the Area vampires will make an appearance there instead of here," he said. Very practical, I thought. That way all the tourists and fangbangers would follow suit.

Inside the closed bar, Betty Joe and a vampire I hadn't met were waiting for us along with, oh joy, Selah Pumphrey. Selah was wearing a black pencil skirt that was at least two sizes too small and a light blue, fitted button down blouse that seemed to be missing a few key buttons. I dipped into her mind, which was what I was there to do anyway, and saw that I wasn't the only one who had gotten dressed this evening with the intent of seducing a tall, blonde Viking.

Since the bar was closed and empty, we didn't bother going back to Eric's office, but instead took a table in the middle of the bar. I looked around and noticed that our booth was still lopsided. There was a red tablecloth covering the remains of the table Eric had removed when it got in the way. I wondered how long Eric was really going to leave it like that. I smiled at the memory of how the booth had gotten that way. Eric gave me a fangy smile in response to my emotions, I guessed, or maybe his own memory of the incident. _Good luck, Selah_, I thought, _This one's mine_.

The vampire I didn't know was called Anthony, pronounced without the "h", and he was sent by Annalise, the Queen of Arkansas, same as Betty Joe was sent by Russell, the King of Mississippi, to make sure Eric, the King of Louisiana, signed off and everyone got their copy. Selah stood beside Eric with the papers and bent from the waist to show him where to sign and what her bra looked like. Though it was difficult to get a read of anything from her except fantasies about Eric, I could glean enough to know she wasn't hiding anything about the contracts. I nodded to Eric and he proceeded to start signing the forms. You might think that after thousands of years of negotiating treaties like this that vampires would have found a way to cut down on the paperwork. However, if you thought that, then you'd be wrong.

As he thumbed through page after page, Eric occasionally questioned Betty Joe or Anthony about some finer point in the treaty, and he always seemed satisfied with the response. Finally he was getting to the bottom of the pile. Selah reached to pick up a signed stack and slid her hand along the edge of one of the pages.

"Ouch! Oh shoot, a paper cut!" Oh, give me a break! I was the only one rolling my eyes at the incident, though. Eric's fangs had not retracted from before, encouraged by our frequent glances towards the booth and each other, but now both Betty Joe's and Anthony's fangs ran out as well. Selah was standing closest to Eric, though, practically waving her bleeding finger in his face.

"Go to the bathroom and see to your finger," Eric commanded Selah, his eyes fixed on me. I could hear her fantasies come crashing down in her mind as he said it. I smiled back at him.

"I'll come help," Betty Joe offered, following Selah to the bathroom. I kept tabs on them through Selah's thoughts, just to make sure things didn't get out of hand. Selah, it turns out, isn't crazy about letting a female vampire suck the end of her finger, but nothing untoward happened in the two minutes they were gone.

Eric had finished signing the papers by the time they were back. Selah left almost immediately after, determinedly not looking at me or Eric. Betty Joe and Anthony left as well after a few comments about this or that, and Eric and I were alone in the bar.

"Anything else on the agenda for tonight?" I asked, walking up to him with a sway in my hips and a sultry smile.

"Yes, and it will take all night," Eric responded, removing his shirt.

"Then we should go home and take care of that."

"No," he said, removing my shirt now. "Pam is at home."

"Oh," I said. Then his mouth was on mine with a sudden fierceness like we'd been apart for weeks. His hands – did he still have only two? – were everywhere at once. My skirt disappeared along with his pants, but he contented himself with working around my underwear. "Oh!" I shouted as he plunged his fingers back inside me and danced his tongue around my ear. I reached down for him, making him make his own sounds of pleasure, as my teeth grabbed hold of his nearest nipple.

Eric flew us over to the broken booth, somehow leaving my underwear behind in the process. I pulled him towards me, but just as he was about to enter, he pulled away. His fangs slid along my stomach down to my thighs and back. He was teasing me until I thought I would burst into flames from the fire building inside me. Through the bond I could feel his fire as well, and the combination of both our desires was almost enough to take me over the edge. He hovered over me, his glistening fangs and gracious plenty both aimed to penetrate me together from above and below. He moved in closer . . . and froze.

Eric spun around faster than I could follow, landing in a defensive posture in front of me.

"Oh good, we aren't too late for the festivities," said a deep, Latin-accented voice I recognized all too well.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

Eric launched himself at Felipe, and the two became a snarling blur. I watched transfixed. Through the bond, I felt Eric's rage and excitement. Not long into the brawl, a blurry vampire went smashing into the wall behind the bar breaking everything in his path. The tattered cape of the still standing figure clued me in to the shocking fact that there would now be an Eric-shaped dent behind the bar. The Viking in question pulled himself free, glass falling around him, and smiled back at Felipe. It wasn't a smile I'd like to see directed at me.

Eric loved a good fight, but I wasn't sharing his confidence since Felipe wasn't the one covered in bits of bar. I did notice a large gash across Felipe's tanned cheek, but it was already on its way to healed. Eric flew head first into Felipe sending the two backwards through two tables. I saw blood splattering up from the tangle and heard more breaking furniture or maybe limbs.

"Here, my dear," Russell said from beside me, handing me the red tablecloth that lay on the remains of the table from the booth. I jumped. I hadn't even noticed him before now. He gave me an appraising look and a slightly fangy smile, letting me he was impressed with what he saw, though I knew I wasn't to his tastes. Thank God for small favors. I took the cloth and wrapped it around my body as I scooted out of the booth with as much dignity as I could muster, which sadly wasn't much given the current circumstances.

In the few seconds my attention was diverted from the fight, things had progressed to a dangerous state. Felipe, bleeding freely from his left thigh, stood on the ruins of a collapsed table with a long wooden splinter firmly gripped in one hand. Eric, on the other hand, had been thrown backwards again and was completely unarmed and completely naked, but covered in only minor scratches that already appeared to be fully healed. He looked like I knew he felt, gleeful at the chance to unleash his fury on a deserving target. Each vampire had blood on his mouth that most likely belonged to the other.

I turned to Russell, who's gaze was now sweeping up and down the 6'4" Viking warrior before him. "Do you think you could stop them?" I asked him uncertainly, wrapping the cloth more like a toga around me.

"Oh, he is a sight," Russell said. His fangs were fully extended as his wide eyes fixed on one particularly excited and alert part of Eric. "But I suppose I should," he said with a small sigh. "Gentlemen," Russell's voice suddenly had an air authority that I'd never heard before. "Stand down."

Felipe's body relaxed slightly, and he looked willing to call a truce. That only made Eric more enthusiastic for the fight. The grin on his face spread wider as he stalked forward a few paces.

"Eric," Russell said in an utterly commanding voice that reverberated off the walls. "Stand down." Russell stepped forward to move between them, Felipe on his left, Eric on his right and me behind him.

I could feel the bloodlust raging through Eric, and if Felipe was feeling anything close to that intense then I, and any other human, needed to be far away from here. Unfortunately, I was completely surrounded by vampires with no immediate path to safety. Even if I could have slipped out, I knew I wouldn't have been able to leave Eric alone with them, not knowing what was going to happen. My fear and anxiety must have made some small breach through Eric's much stronger emotions, because he turned to look at me, eyes bright from the fight, and straightened out of his crouch.

Eric stepped cautiously towards me, his body turned towards Russell and Felipe. Eric stopped when he stood between me and the two other vampires. After indulging in a good long stare at his bare butt, Eric's voice brought me back to the present.

"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" he demanded. He was eyeing Felipe with a murderous stare. The fact that he was naked, his magnificent white body splattered with red blood, did nothing to diminish the effect.

"We have a matter of state to discuss with you, Eric," Russell said.

Eric shook his head and body like a dog after a swim, but instead of water droplets he sent drops of blood and bits of glass in all directions. He didn't spare a glance my way, but kept his eyes fixed on the King of Nevada, who now had a smug expression that made Eric's cockiest leer seem completely self-conscious.

"Whatever matters we have to discuss, Russell, are no concern of Nevada's," Eric said. His voice was the only thing to calm down so far.

"Ah, but they are, Viking," said Felipe. He paced a little and as he did Eric moved as well to keep me from view. "You see, we are now bound by treaty. Oh, but I must have gotten to tell you the good news," Felipe said, with complete insincerity. He removed the neck clasp of his cape, an offensively large ruby I noticed, and pulled the gem off the tattered remains of his cape which he discarded to the floor. "Annalise and I are now wed. So you see, any dealings that could affect the Kingdom of Arkansas are of great concern to me." He stalked over to the table where Eric had just signed the aforementioned treaty. "The sickness has turned deadly in your kingdom. Now we must discuss how to handle the situation." Indira, I thought. She must have died again.

Without the blood bond, I would have thought Eric had no reaction to this news at all. Nothing about his outward appearance gave any indication that he had even heard Felipe. When Felipe picked up something from the table – I couldn't see past Eric what it was – Eric gave a very audible reaction that made Felipe's smile falter slightly.

"Miss Stackhouse," Felipe said with an air of sophistication that was absolutely comical given the current situation, "this is yours I believe?" He was holding up my discarded thong. Well it would hardly fit Eric, who was still wearing nothing and, as I could tell from the longing look in Russell's eyes (if vampires could drool, he would need a few napkins), was still fully . . . alert.

"Maybe y'all would be kind enough to give us a minute here?" I asked. I was surprised to find my voice was steady.

"Of course, my dear," Russell said courteously. He escorted Felipe to the back. Eric's eyes followed them until they were out of sight. I reminded myself they were still in earshot, but couldn't help letting out an audible sigh of relief.

Eric turned around, and I saw his eyes were still bright with excitement. Then he was on me, his mouth fervently attacking mine. I pushed at him as hard as I could, and for a while I worried he wouldn't stop. Just when I was about to want him not to, he pulled back.

"Clothes," I said breathlessly. In a flash, Eric retrieved my skirt, blouse and bra and handed them to me. It was awkward getting dressed under the tablecloth, but I didn't want to drop it in case our visitors came back too soon. Eric hadn't given me back my underwear, but since I had a good guess at the reason, I decided not to protest.

"Should I go?" I asked Eric, who was watching me getting dressed with an expression that clearly indicated the clothes should be coming off, not going back on. His body was splattered with blood, but there were no visible cuts anywhere. I'm not proud to say it sent a lusty shiver through me. Eric leered at me with a smile that often preceded sex, and I had half a mind to finish what we'd started. But now wasn't the time and this definitely wasn't the place.

"No," he said, picking his jeans up off the floor. "Stay." He didn't bother with his underwear either.

Eric was fastening his pants, not an easy task since his excitement hadn't gone down yet, when Russell and Felipe came back. Though the three of them seemed content to stand, I brushed the debris off a table that was mostly in tact and pulled up a third and fourth chair. The vampires eyed this process with matching expressions of curiosity, but once I was finished, they sat. Eric made it a point to leave the empty chair between himself and Russell. Though it meant I would be facing Felipe, I thought that was better than sitting beside him.

I went to the bar, stepping lightly since I was barefoot and didn't think an open wound would help keep the tenuous truce. Luckily Eric had just missed the microwave, so I heated up three bottles of True Blood for the three kings at the table.

"Eric," Russell decided to start the conversation, "tell us about the Indian." He meant Indira, of course. Any wisp of a hope I had that she was still alive was swept away with Russell's words.

"You seem to be well informed about the situation already," Eric said.

I brought the three bottles over to the table and set them in front of the vampires. I instinctively turned to go back to the bar when I realized I wasn't a waitress right now. Instead, I took my seat beside Eric. He reached for the back of my chair and pulled me closer to him. I would have gladly leaned into him if not for the dried blood on his bare chest.

"Her final death happened at sunset," Eric had decided to explain anyway. "All attempts to give her blood failed. The doctor tending to her informs me that she expelled what blood remained in her body, almost as if she'd been staked. Her body is now ash."

"So it is true, then?" Russell asked.

"Yes. The more recent cases appear to be more severe. I expect the illness has now become deadly and that this will be the fate of any vampire who becomes afflicted."

"You say the illness cannot be spread," Felipe chimed in, "and yet thus far it has only arisen in these three Kingdoms." I wasn't sure if he was asking a question or making an accusation.

"Geography is the only link between the afflicted so far. They range in everything from age to eating preferences. Whatever causes the sickness does not appear to discriminate."

"And yet here you sit, healthy and vital, while those under your dominion fall." That was definitely an accusation.

"Eric, Annalise and I have been fortunate," Russell said. After a moment, Eric and Felipe tore their gazes from each other to look at Russell. He continued, "Even if we cannot discover the cause of the illness, we must still act against it. The cases in Mississippi as well as those in Arkansas were all within twenty miles of your borders, Eric." Russell did not look happy at where he was taking this, but he kept going. "Felipe has proposed a quarantine."

Eric's entire body went tense. "I would agree, of course, if that had any chance of keeping the illness confined." Eric was lying, and I wasn't the only one who knew it. "But as the cases are very isolated and there is no evidence that the illness can be spread by an afflicted vampire, that will not be necessary."

"Necessary or not, we cannot appear not to take this matter seriously. News spreads quickly among the us, especially news of final death." Felipe was using this as an excuse to reconquer Louisiana, and there was nothing we could do about it except find a cure.

The vampires debated and plotted well into the night. Eric, always on the defensive, kept steering the conversation towards discovering a cause. Felipe, offensive in every sense, was advocating a lock down and possibly purging of the vampires of Louisiana. Russell, the referee, was with Eric in wanting to figure this out, but also with de Castro in not wanting to look passive while this new threat gained traction. I sat on the sidelines and occasionally played the role of waitress. I wondered if any of them would tip me when they left.

Eventually Russell stood. "The sun is coming," he said. "We must resolve this soon, Eric. One way or the other." The way he said it wasn't a threat, just a statement of grim fact.

Felipe and Eric stood at the same time, but I was just too tired to leave my seat. "Thank you for your hospitality, Miss Stackhouse," Felipe said. "Though next time, I expect a sweeter drink." I resisted the temptation to flip him off.

"Next time you enter my kingdom without my consent," Eric said to him, "not all of you will leave it."

"Warriors are not kings, Viking, no matter what the council decrees."

As soon as they were gone, Eric was on the phone to Rasul. Then he called Pam. Ordinarily I might have busied myself rinsing the empty blood bottles or straightening the room, but it was in such a state that I didn't even bother. Mostly, I just wanted to crawl into bed and forget this night ever happened.

By the time we made it back to the house, Pam was preparing her travel coffin. Eric wanted her back in New Orleans in case an evacuation, or more likely war, was necessary. She had planned to leave Friday anyway, so the only inconvenience was that she had to travel during the day. Rasul had arranged for transportation through Anibus, who had a stellar safety record, but Eric still arranged for an escort of werewolves. I said goodbye to Pam, and left her and Eric to talk until almost dawn. I heard Eric in the shower as I was dozing off into an uneasy and unsatisfied sleep.

The next evening Eric and I went to Alcide's for the Long Tooth pack meeting. Between recovering from food poisoning and staying up until almost dawn, I wasn't surprised that I had slept in until almost dark. I was surprised that I didn't feel rested, though. I was also surprised that Eric still insisted on coming with me to the meeting given the events of the previous night. He seemed unwilling to leave my side, and I had to admit I was relieved about that.

We didn't say much on the way over, but Eric help my hand in his. He ran his thumb over my palm as he liked to do, and it felt a shudder of lust ripple from my belly outwards with each circle. Since he could feel my moods as well as I could feel his, I often thought he did this on purpose just to drive me nuts. But reading his mood, I knew it relaxed him, too.

The meeting was suppose to start at full dark, but given Eric's constraints we arrived a few minutes after. I'd wanted to arrive an hour or so late after finished some unfinished business from the night before, but we both agreed it was best to get this over with quickly. When we came to the door, I saw that the house was packed with werewolves, which was the point after all. Jannalynn opened the door for us. She stared Eric down and stepped aside to let me in.

"You have to invite him in," I said. I knew she was aware of that, but an easy reading of her snarly thoughts told me in no uncertain terms that she had no intention of inviting a vampire into her packmaster's house.

"Come in, Eric," Alcide bellowed from somewhere deep in the house. Eric stepped across the threshold as if he owned the place. Jannalynn backed further away, but kept herself alert and looked ready to shift at the first sign of fangs. Luckily, Eric's were currently retracted.

I noticed all of the Weres were giving Eric a wider berth than usual tonight. Perhaps he looked more dangerous than usual to them as well. Jannalynn led us upstairs to an office where Alcide was waiting with my special cocktail. The billowing steam rising in unnaturally straight lines from the mug weren't reassuring, but I'd done this before and promised to do it again, so I steeled myself for the task ahead.

"Where's Amelia?" I asked. I hadn't been sure whether she would be here or not, but I'd been hoping she would be, just in case.

"She's not a member of the pack," Alcide said firmly. That was true, but he'd never hesitated bring me or Debbie Pelt to a Were only meeting before. I knew it wasn't the right time to press him on the issue, but he and I were going to have words about this.

"Do they know the reason for this meeting," Eric asked Alcide.

"No, but they are about to find out," he said, looking directly at me.

"Just say no," I said, and threw back the mug. I wondered what kind of drug this was like, if it was what marijuana was like or maybe acid or something more exotic. I closed my eyes and felt like I was flying. It was a strange but not unsettling feeling. When I opened my eyes again, I realized I was flying. Well, Eric had his hands on my waist and my feet were an inch above the floor. I giggled and held my arms up.

"Sookie," Alcide said, his voice serious and stern, "Are you ready?"

I realized I better stay focused and get the job done. My feet grazed the floor and moved as if I was walking, but Eric was supporting my full weight. He was so strong and his hands were large and firm on my hips. I thought about him sliding my pants down and bending me over right here in Alcide's office. Then Eric thought about his hands pulling my hips onto him at a steadily rising rhythm and his fangs sinking into my shoulder as he reached around me to feel my perfect breasts. We both stopped where we were.

"Soon, lover," he whispered into my ear. "Don't tempt me further or I'll have you here whether you really want me to or not." The proximity of his mouth and promise of his words didn't help me steer my thoughts back to the Weres. As if we were sharing one fantasy in one mind, we watched his fangs sink in as he lifted me onto him. I let out a low moan that he echoed in perfect harmony.

"Eric," Alcide said, blazing red with power and authority. "Snap out of it."

We'd been about half a second from acting on our shared fantasy. Eric's hands had already reached around to unfasten my pants and his fangs were scraping along my neck. He stopped at Alcide's words, pulling himself together with considerable difficulty.

"What did you give her?" he asked. He liked it. The way our minds were linked right now, as closely as our blood bond bound our emotions. I'd heard his thoughts before, but never this clearly. And now I was pushing thoughts back to him like a silent conversation in our minds, only we were using more images and sensations than words. The dialogue was effortless, and I could image how the sex would be under these conditions. My already heated body burst into flames. I turned in Eric's arms to share my fire with him, but stopped when I saw his face.

He was already on fire. Eric was a bright crimson ball of energy glowing in front of me. He radiated power and . . . love. He loved me completely, more than anything. More even than he loved himself, which was quite a lot. I reached up to place my hand on his cheek, "You are so beautiful," I said. My words echoed around the room and came back out his mouth. He kissed me and the colors exploded, purple, pink and red scattered everywhere I could see. I could feel how it felt for him to kiss me, the excitement of it was overwhelming. We thought about linking our bodies together and he felt my pleasure and I felt his. When he was inside me, he felt like he was home, that was the only way I could relate to the feeling. It was where he wanted to be when he was happy, or sad, or angry. I felt our bodies pressing together, the rainbow of reds swirling around us.

"Eric," Alcide said with a sigh, "I rescind your invitation."

Eric didn't fight it, but stepped backwards, away from me, and out through the office window. His blue eyes were eclipsed by the red flames that still engulfed him, but now that we were no longer touching it was easier to pull myself out of his fiery mind. Alcide came to my side as I started to sink, my Jell-O legs not strong enough to support me. I giggled, "Jell-O."

"Sookie. Focus." Alcide was annoyed. After a nod from Eric letting me know I needed to listen and get this done with, I turned to Alcide. His red had taken on murky tinges at the edges, almost green. Jealousy. He was jealous of Eric.

"You have Amelia, now," I said to him, "be happy with her." The edges around him transitioned to pink. Not love, but almost. That's better. "And if you hurt her, I'll have you neutered," I said. His eyes widened at the threat, but he guided me out of the office without further comment.

We glided down the stairs, at least that's how it felt to me. I saw Eric through the back window, his eyes fixed on me. He saw me naked and called me beautiful. I moved to go to him, but Alcide pulled me back to the present. Jannalynn threw her head back and called the meeting to order with a howl and two yips. The Weres all stood, focused on Alcide and me. They all glowed pink and red and violet, colors of devotion and respect for Alcide, all except one. His eyes were looking towards us, but his mind was on the Viking in the yard. No, on the vampire in the yard. The Were was green and black and gold. He was the one, the informant, the traitor.

I walked towards him slowly, swaying on my feet. His crew cut hair accentuated his weak jaw in an unflattering way, but the black ripples through his aura were even less attractive. "Jeremy," I said, "you don't like vampires." The Were straightened his posture. Black flames licked around him. "You don't like werewolves, either." He didn't respond, but the colors around him darkened further.

"Oh, I see," I said, suddenly a pinkish-orange. Sympathy. "Your parents were killed by vampires. That's so sad," I said. I could see him as a boy as he remembered it. "You were so young. You didn't even know. About them, or yourself, or vampires. You poor thing." I reached out and put my hands on his face. I went deeper into his mind, and when his tears reached my fingertips, he was an open book. I saw everything.

"Oh, Jeremy," I said. He was orphaned and alone, and in so much pain. He didn't find out who he was or what happened until later, when the changes started happening to him. He was so angry when he found out. He was angry with everyone, even his parents for not telling him. Over time, his anger turned to hate, stoked by fanatics who preached a doctrine of hate. "You can't hate everyone," I said. "The wolves are your family, they can help you heal."

"They took my family," he said, "as much as the bloodsuckers did. The pack master sent them to their deaths as a diversion. He didn't care about them, or me. He wanted something else and needed the vampires looking the other way." He was just a cub at the time, maybe 8 or 9. He'd learned all this later, when he was 16. He'd made the packmaster confess it to him, before he ripped out his throat. There was blood everywhere, black blood on his hands. I took a step back from him.

"So you've been moving from pack to pack since then," I said. "Finding their secrets, exposing them. Killing their leaders. This isn't vengeance any more, it's just murder."

Snarls erupted in the room, and I heard glass shattering. Eric wanted back in, but no one was giving a thought to him at the moment, much less an invitation.

"You work at my restaurant," I said. "You brought me soup." I shook my head. "I wish you hadn't poisoned it. It was so lovely and smooth. It wasn't nice when it came back up. Were you trying to kill me, too?" I asked. I didn't think so, but I could read that his intentions were definitely murderous.

"No," he said stiffly. "I wanted him." Eric. He wanted to hurt Eric. "They told me if I poisoned you, that he would suffer. Did he?" Jeremy asked me, pleading in his voice, "Did the vampire suffer?" It was Eric who killed his parents. I cried with Jeremy for a moment, for his pain and his fate. But Eric was a good man. He had honor, I could see it in him, the gold with the red. He would not have killed unnecessarily.

"Yes," I said, "he suffered." Jeremy smiled faintly. "He suffered because he loves me, and I was in pain. But you don't remember what love is anymore. You are so full of hate, there is no room for love." A stream of tears was running down my face, but there was more to tell of Jeremy's tale.

"The Fellowship found you alone and gave you a means for revenge. But they would have betrayed you, too, Jeremy. They are only hate, and they hate you as well. Here you could have found love again." The snarls in the room were getting louder. Jeremy's betrayal would be dealt with, and soon. But Jeremy didn't care. He knew the Fellowship hated him, but he hated himself right along with them. He knew he would not live past tonight, and he almost welcomed the thought. He was so lost.

"Sookie," Alcide said in a strained voice, "Go." His body was shimmering and the magical mist of transformation was filling the room.

I staggered to the shattered door where Eric stood. As soon as I was over the threshold he grabbed me to him and flew us back to the car. I heard howling and ripping noises from the house, now alight with black and red flames. I felt them ripping him apart, and Jeremy's release when they did. He was so full of anger and hate, that it was a peaceful ending for him. Eric fastened my seatbelt and floored it home. He stopped abruptly at the gate. I took the chance to get out and hurl on the lawn. Amelia didn't get rid of the hangover effects after all.

I felt pain in my chest, but it wasn't from the drugs and it wasn't mine. It was coming from Eric, but it wasn't his either. "Eric," I said, "what's wrong?"

"Pam," he said. Then she appeared. Her face was streaked red, and for once she looked like hell. She was whiter than I'd ever seen a vampire look. White was pain, of course.

"Jamie is ill," she said in a whisper I barely heard. Eric moved from me to her. He put his hands on her shoulders and stared down at his child. She seemed to take comfort in his gaze, like he was lending her his strength. As I saw the pink flow from him to her, I realized that was exactly what he was doing. Then more of the drugs flowed out of me onto the ground.

Eric turned, torn between who to comfort. "Go inside," I told them. "I'll come in a minute. I'm fine." With vampire speed they were gone. The Weres at the gate stared between me and the path of the vampires, trying to figure out what was going on. I got off my knees to follow them in.

"Sookie." It was Heidi.

"Not a good time, Heidi," I told her, fighting back another urge to be sick.

"I'm so sorry," she said, "I have no choice." She was fighting her own actions as she moved closer, like her will wasn't her own. Then her fist was a green stone as it slammed into my face.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

I don't drink much, seeing the effects of alcohol on a near daily basis, and I've never drank so much that I was really hung over the next day. But even with my limited personal experience on the matter, I think it would be safe to say that I woke up to the worst hangover humanly possible to have. I wished like hell I could just go back to sleep, but the throbbing in my temple and aching in my cheek wasn't going along with that plan. Slowly, in case my brains thought about sneaking out through my eye sockets, I opened my eyes.

There was a faint light coming from a doorway to my left, but otherwise it was dark. I had no idea if it was night or day. I was lying on a bed, but not my own. Gradually last night started coming back to me, as did the queasiness of my stomach. Hoping the doorway led to a bathroom, I moved to get up. Luckily, I was moving slowly, so the chain that tied my wrist to the bed frame didn't yank me back too much. Right, I'd been kidnapped. Heidi had knocked me out.

I had a moment in my head—swimming state to wonder why on earth she'd done it. Not why did she'd kidnapped me, I had a pretty solid theory on that one, but why had she knocked me out? She's a vampire after all and I'm just a weak human. Okay, not so weak as most given my regular infusions of Eric's blood, but still not anywhere near vampire strength. Heck, I wasn't anywhere near werewolf strength. All she had to do was grab my arm and drag me along. Maybe she was worried I'd cry out for Eric, but then she could have just put a hand over my mouth. It really bugged me the way they always just resort to hitting you.

After I'd finished my internal rant about the brutality of vampire abductions, the seriousness of my situation started to sink it. I looked around the room, since my eyes had adjusted to the dim light. I was in an elaborately decorated bedroom, chained to the canopied, Victorian era bed. There was a small bedside table with a lamp next to me and an ornately carved wardrobe and an antique vanity on the wall opposite the doorway. On the wall I was facing was another door with a detailed frame and old—fashioned key hole. I wondered if it was locked before I realized it didn't matter. I could barely move off the bed, let alone reach the door. The bedroom had wooden floors and large rug at the foot of the bed. The room beyond the opened door had a tiled floor, so I figured that was indeed the bathroom. Given the option to choose one of those doors right now, I would have been sorely tempted by the bathroom.

Another stabbing pain in my head reminded me of another pain, the one last night I felt through Eric. I reached out through the bond and realized he was only there in the background. So it was daytime. At least that meant I'd have a few vampire—free hours to assess my situation.

Heidi had been acting against her will. She liked me and was loyal to Eric when she was herself, so I deduced that she had kidnapped me for Felipe, who was either her maker or had threatened her son. Felipe had been angling for my affections lately, but my ego wasn't so big that I thought it had anything to do with me. Maybe he was going to try to trade me to Eric for Louisiana? I had a brief moment of doubt about what Eric would say, but I knew where his priorities were.

With another wave of nausea, my priorities went back to the bathroom I couldn't reach. I moved to the edge of the bed. There was a wicker waste basket beside the night stand. That would do for now. When I wiped my arm across my mouth I realized my face was throbbing in pain. Previously my headache drowned out everything else, but now I felt around the bruised area. _Thanks for the shiner, Heidi_, I grumbled to myself.

As I was praying for a toothbrush, I heard a lock click on the door across the room. I guess they did lock it after all. Go figure.

I watched the door open and a man enter with a tray of food. My jaw dropped.

"Hey, babe." Quinn's shaved bald head reflected the light in the bathroom, and I could barely make out his paisley purple eyes in the dim glow. His expression was grim, even with the forced smile. Quinn was a large man, and his presence filled the doorway, but he looked beaten. Not literally since he had no visible bruises (that made one of us), but his shoulders slumped and his head hung a little.

"I brought you lunch," he said, coming over to set the tray on the side table. He looked down at me and I stared back up, still in shock.

"Quinn?" It came out as a question, but I knew who he was.

"Sookie, you look like hell," he said, but his smile turned a little more genuine. He placed a hand gently on my cheek and I closed my eyes at the pain. "Fucking vampires," he murmured, mostly to himself.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"Little Rock." Quinn's face fell a little more, and I could read the sorrow in his emotions. "We're in Queen Annalise's guest house." That confirmed my suspicions about who sent Heidi.

"What time is it?"

"A little past one. I didn't want to wake you. Here," he said, handing me an ice pack from the tray. I took it and placed it gently on my cheek. The cold felt good, but the pressure hurt like hell. I moved my other hand up to hold it in place, making my chain jingle.

"You got a key for this?" I asked.

"No." He sounded sorry. I sensed his regret, but it wasn't about not having the key. "Sookie," he said, shaking his head slightly, "I'm so sorry." He was looking down at my lap, like he couldn't bear to look me in the eyes.

I wanted to ask him what he was sorry for. For selling me and the Louisiana vamps out to Felipe de Castro in the first place, or for showing up at my house and telling me I'd never find someone who loved me, or for his role in whatever was happening now. When his gaze came back up to meet my eyes, I couldn't bear to ask him any of it, the pain was so intense.

"What's happened to you, Quinn?" I asked him, my voice gentle.

He considered the question for a while, but in the end decided not to answer. He didn't need to, really. I could read it off of him. Felipe had his mom and sister, and used them as leverage over him. Felipe had broken the tiger inside him. I reached over to touch Quinn's hand. "I'm sorry," I said. We sat in silence for several minutes.

"Sookie, he's going to destroy Eric," Quinn said, breaking the silence with a hammer. He wasn't sorry for Eric, but he was sorry for me. "De Castro won't allow anyone to challenge him. He has Annalise bound in a silver coffin or maybe he's staked her by now. He plans to use this vampire sickness as justification to seize Louisiana. When he does, he'll take Eric out."

I'd pretty much guessed as much, but hearing it said out loud as fact made my already aching head spin a little faster. "Do you know what he's planning to do?"

"Not all of it."

"What does he want with me?"

"Apparently it isn't enough to kill Eric. De Castro wants to take away everything Eric values first, start with you, I guess. He expects you to help him kill Eric."

"He has to know I won't help him," I said. "I'll never do anything for him."

"You will," Quinn said, his voice as soft as it ever got. "He knows your weaknesses, Sookie. He knows how to control people. He'll threaten your brother or Amelia or anyone else you love, and you'll do what he wants." Quinn was right, of course. That's how Felipe controlled him, after all. If it came down to it, I wasn't sure if I'd choose Eric over everyone else that I loved, but I wasn't sure I wouldn't either. I shook the thought off. I wouldn't think about that unless I had to.

"Besides," Quinn continued, "he thinks that taking you will cause Eric to lose control. That he'll do something reckless to make himself an easier target."

"So, what? Is he just going to hold me prisoner here until Eric does something stupid?" I felt a little better at that. Eric was thoughtful and clever. Even in his rage, he would come up with a plan. He would find a way to rescue me and save himself. "He won't fall for it," I said with confidence.

Quinn snorted. "I didn't think so, either. De Castro overestimates your importance to him."

I scowled at Quinn, remembering his words for months ago. "Eric loves me, Quinn, more than anyone else ever has or ever could." I'd never known that as strongly as I knew it now. I'd read it straight from Eric's heart last night. "But he's smarter than that. He won't do anything reckless."

Quinn's look turned skeptical, but he didn't argue. Then I read the reason for the sadness in his eyes.

"He's going to try to turn me?" I moved to get off the bed, to stand up, but the chain yanked me back.

"Does it really matter to you which one of them does it? Eric would have done it eventually. To tell the truth, I'm surprised he hadn't already."

"Eric would never have done it." Suddenly the urge to defend Eric to Quinn overwhelmed everything else. "He had the chance, and he didn't take it. Eric risked his own life to make sure I kept mine as it is. He was willing to lose everything, even me, rather than turn me against my will. You don't know him, Quinn. Just because you didn't choose me, doesn't mean no one else would."

"It doesn't matter now, does it? When de Castro wakes up tonight, he'll take your blood and give you his. And you'll be one of them. There's no way to stop that now." It hurt Quinn to say it. I could feel his pain, though his thoughts were still murky.

"I won't," I said softly, tears welling up. "I'll die."

"You may wish for that, like Jake did, but it will happen anyway. I'm sorry, Sookie."

"Help me," I said in a small, watery voice.

Quinn stood up to leave, but his expression was conflicted. "I can't. He has my mom and Frannie. I have no choice anymore." He looked like a man who's will was broken, and that's exactly what he was at that moment. His head hung low, and I felt the despair rolling off of him.

"Please," I begged him, "Quinn, please."

"He promises it won't be painful. He'll do it quickly. He won't force himself on you." Quinn's voice broke. I could hear the raging battle inside him: one part wanting to rip my chain from the bed and run away with me, and the other needing to stay to protect his family. This was our problem, why we never worked as a couple. There was always this choice, and he always made it the same way.

When he left I threw the tray of food at the door behind him. I knew the choice he had before him was unfair, but that didn't help me feel any better about where that left me at the moment, which was tied to a bed waiting to die. Eventually, I gave in to a good long cry, but I was sorry afterwards. Not only did it increase the throbbing in my head, but I didn't have access to any tissues either.

Some time later, a few hours maybe, the door opened again. Two men stepped inside. They were huge, the body building type. Both had dark hair, but one was fairer than the other, who looked like he spent a lot of time at the tanning bed. I listened in to their thoughts, to get a sense of what was coming, but there wasn't much there. These weren't the thinking type.

Tweedle Dee, the fairer one, was thinking about how many calories he'd had today and what muscles he was going to train during this evening's workout. He was also thinking it smelled funny in here before he saw the soup splattered on the door and the sandwich on the floor.

Tweedle Dumb, the connoisseur of tan—in—a—bottle, was thinking that I would look pretty hot with some make—up on and that my tan was more even than his. More to the point, they were there to unchain me, and he was thinking how silly it was that they both had to be here to keep me from escaping since I was a woman and clearly no stronger than his little finger.

Tweedle Dee came over to the bed and reached for my arm. I held it out for him, knowing his intent and that he was more interested in having his way with Tweedle Dumb than with me. He looked at me curiously, wondering why I wasn't more skittish of him, and if it meant that it was obvious that he was gay. Apparently he wasn't out yet.

"Go get cleaned up," Tweedle Dumb said, gesturing towards the bathroom. "There are clothes for you to wear inside."

I didn't need telling twice. I went in to the bathroom and locked the door behind me. I knew either one of them could bust it down easily enough, but it gave me the temporary illusion of privacy. I found a toothbrush and toothpaste, thankfully, and after brushing my teeth washed my face in the sink. There was a large brown garment bag hanging on the back of the door and a fluffy white towel on the rack by the tub. After a moment of thinking I'd rather Felipe have to deal with dirty me, I gave in and took a shower. I could hardly shower anymore without thinking of Eric, but this time it wasn't a happy thought. He would wake up soon, and there was no way he would get to me in time. I wasn't much for planning, but I knew I had to come up with something.

I took my time in the bathroom. Tweedle Dee eventually got impatient and banged on the door, but Tweedle Dumb told him to cool it. Reluctant but resigned, I unzipped the garment bag. Inside was a ruby red (I was noticing a theme with de Castro) sequined gown with a square neckline and spaghetti straps. It was floor length with a long slit up the middle of the front that would end just at my knees. I removed the dress from the bag and found another hanger behind it. Great. To the second hanger was clipped a black satin strapless bra with matching garter and thong. There were hose and pumps at the bottom of the bag. Apparently tonight required formal wear.

As I looked at the dress in my hand and underwear in the bag, I debated pulling my clothes from last night back on. Then, I figured, I may as well go out in style. Besides, if I kept Felipe happy, there was a chance I could get him to wait before turning me, giving me enough time to come up with a plan or Eric enough time to charge in and save the night. It was all I had to hope for, but it was enough to keep me going for now. I was zipping up the dress when Tweedle Dee knocked again.

"Hurry up," he shouted through the door.

"Almost done," I said back. There was nothing I could do with my hair other than leave it down. I slipped into the heels and opened the door. I got a small bit of satisfaction from the reactions of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb before I realized that looking good was the last thing I should be doing in front of Felipe, not that I had much choice in my attire.

"The Master says you are to wear this," said Tweedle Dumb, handing me a box I recognized right away.

"No thanks," I said. "It's a bit gaudy, don't you think?"

He didn't know how to respond to that, so he looked to Tweedle Dee for support. "Put it on, or we'll do it for you," was Tweedle Dee's response.

Finally, the fire I'd been missing was kindled inside me, and I was ready to be defiant. I may have put on this stupid (albeit gorgeous) outfit, but I was not wearing the necklace. I felt my strength coming back to me, and my will to fight for my freedom. I was unchained, and all that stood between me and the door to freedom were these two thugs. It had been a few days since I'd had Eric's blood (or body, I thought longingly), but I figured I might just be strong enough to get past them, especially since an all out fight from me was the last thing they were expecting.

Just when I had steeled myself for action, a tiger bound into the room catching both of my targets off guard. Quinn pounced on Tweedle Dee, closest to the door, and I grabbed the chair from the vanity and smashed it over Tweedle Dumb's head. I heard snarling and ripping, and then Quinn was on the staggering Tweedle Dumb, knocking the wind out of him as he landed on his chest. In seconds both men were unconscious and bleeding on the floor. Quinn stared at me with brilliant eyes, alive with fight at last. He ran out of the room and I raced after him, tossing the heels behind me as I went.

Quinn slowed to a stalk when we rounded the next corridor. I crept low after him, keeping a hand gripped into the fur on his back. At the end of the passage were two more guards, but they weren't looking our way just yet. I loosened my grip on Quinn, in case he had to act quickly. His body sank lower and a deep rumble ran sounded in his chest. The second one of the guards turned, Quinn was there and blood and bits of flesh flew everywhere. I didn't have time to be queasy. I just ran through the doorway, slipping a little on the wet floor.

On the other side of the doorway was a large open hall with huge wooden doors at the end. I felt the excitement building rapidly inside me. There was a rage on the wind coming towards us, and I knew Eric was awake. I took strength from the thought of him. I sprinted for the door and jerked it open. Sure enough, it led outside, and the sky had only a faint glow remaining.

I realized Quinn had stopped behind me. "Come on, Quinn!" I shouted and pulled the tiger's tail, but he didn't move. A terrible noise ripped through his chest, making me turn and throw my arms protectively over my face. But he wasn't snarling at me. Felipe was standing by one of the doors leading out of the hall flanked by two burly vamps.

"Going somewhere, Quinn?" asked Felipe. He was wearing fitted black pants tucked into knee length black boots, a frilly white dress shirt and a gold cape. Nothing about him look comical in the least. Quinn growled in response and backed up a few paces until he was halfway out of the door. I wasn't sure if I should run or wait. Then I heard muffled noises from a side door as two more vampires emerged. One held Quinn's mom by the throat, ready to snap her neck if she tried to transform. The noises were coming from Frannie, who was struggling with all her insignificant might against the grip of the other vampire.

Quinn made a small whimper beside me. I stroked the back of his head for what good it did. We were caught. I wouldn't be able to outrun five vampires. Even if Quinn tried to hold them off, he couldn't keep all of them back for more than a second. Here Quinn had finally made the choice to help me, and now he was going to pay for it dearly. I stepped back inside the threshold to stand beside the growling tiger.

"What will it be? You can leave now, if you wish, taking Miss Stackhouse with you, and these pathetic creatures' lives will be forfeited. It will be no great loss, I am sure."

I bent a little to put my mouth near the tiger's ear. "You tried," I told him, "and that's more than I hoped for. It's okay." I ran my hand around his large head and then took a small step away. When he looked back up at me the fire had gone out of his eyes completely. He was defeated and broken again. He lay down on the floor, and the familiar mist engulfed his massive form.

"That's better," Felipe said. When Quinn was human again, naked and sprawled on the floor, Felipe took a step closer. "Your disobedience will not go unpunished," he said. He gave a curt nod to the vampire holding Quinn's mom.

"NO!" I shouted, but it was too late. The vampire's fangs sank in, ripping out her throat. The life flowed out of her and her body went limp. The vampire dropped the body to the floor and kicked it out towards where we stood. Quinn started snarling and changing again, but he wouldn't make it in time. Frannie was struggling so hard that the vampire holding her moved his hand from her mouth to her flailing body and her screams filled the hall and echoed in my head. Fur sprouted back over Quinn's body, and he bound towards his mother's corpse.

Heidi came through yet another door, armed with a rifle. She shot the tiger with a dart just as he reached his mother. Quinn fell limp to the floor beside her, transforming to human once again. Frannie's pain was drowning out everything else in my mind.

"He will not defy me again," Felipe said with an evil satisfaction. He waved the other vampire off, Frannie screaming and flailing helplessly. "Chain him. Put the girl in as well." I heard her screams as they disappeared down a passageway.

I stood in the doorway, too shocked and horrified to move. One of Felipe's body guards walked over and picked up Quinn's body and carried him off after the still screaming Frannie. Heidi gave me a sorrowful look before following after them. I knew I should run, at least try to make Quinn's horrible sacrifice have been for something, but I couldn't do it. I could only stand there and sob.

"Come, my dear," Felipe said, coming over to take my hand. I followed where he led me, tears flowing freely down my face. We ended up in another bedroom, decorated the same with Victorian era furniture, though this one was much larger.

"You bastard," I said when the heaving in my chest finally stopped.

"He was aware of the consequences of disobedience," Felipe said. "Now you are as well. Have a seat."

I straightened my spine and threw my shoulders back and chest out. Felipe laughed. "You do have spirit," he said. He gave me a careful evaluation and said, "That color looks lovely on you."

"Go to hell."

"Manners, my dear." He walked over to a desk against the wall and picked up the necklace he'd tried to give me twice. He walked over and fastened it around my neck. I stood stock still, even as he paused to inhale my scent. I reached out for Eric's courage through the bond. I could feel his rage, and I knew he was searching for me.

Felipe took my left hand and lifted it to his mouth to kiss. I curled my fingers into a fist, but he unfolded them easily to remove my wedding band. "You won't be needing this anymore."

"Eric will kill you," I said. I needed to believe it right now, whether or not it was true.

"Tell me, why is he so attached to you? Does fairy blood, diluted so, have such a strong allure that it can ensnare a vampire as old as Eric?" Felipe sounded honestly curious. Well, I thought, the longer we talk the better chance Eric will find us in time.

"We're bonded," I said simply.

"Yes, another curiosity." He paced the room. "Why would he do such a thing?" I wasn't sure if Felipe was asking me or himself.

"It wasn't our choice," I said. That was only sort of true. We hadn't chosen to be bonded the first time. Eric had done it to save me from Andre. It was absolutely our choice the second time, though, after Amelia broke the bond. "Queen Sophie-Anne wanted me tied to her."

"And she chose the Viking as her vessel? I doubt that."

"No, Andre was going to do it. But Eric was there and had already had my blood before and I'd had his. So he was the natural choice."

Felipe looked thoughtful. "Can you feel him now?"

"Yes." No point in lying. He knew how bonds worked.

"And what do you feel?"

"Anger." More like undiluted rage, but no need to elaborate. Felipe smiled.

"What does he feel from you?"

"Anger." And fear, but again, no need to elaborate.

Felipe laughed lightly, then looked thoughtful again. "Do you know why he has kept you human?" he asked.

I thought for a moment. I could tell him the truth, that I couldn't be turned, but I wasn't sure that Felipe would believe me or that he wouldn't try anyway. For some reason, I didn't want him to have the knowledge. "I don't want to be turned," I said.

"Ah," he said, as if my answer revealed more to him than I knew. "So it's love, is it? How interesting." He stalked towards me until he stood barely three inches away. "Do you love him in return?"

"Yes," I said firmly, and I sent all my love through the bond to Eric. I could feel when he felt it, and a small smile pulled at my lips as he sent his love and strength to me.

"You will love me," Felipe said, stroking a hand along the unbruised side of my face.

"No."

He stepped back from me and paced again. "Have you ever used your gift on a vampire?" he asked.

"No," I said instantly. "I can't read vampires at all."

"Why do you think that is?"

"I don't know. Maybe because y'all are dead?"

"Or maybe because you aren't one of us," he said. "I wonder if that will change once you are. If our minds will be opened to you as well."

"I doubt it," I said. "In fact, it might make it all go away. Who knows what will happen? I'll probably be useless as a vampire." I tried to sound convincing. It didn't work.

"Oh, you won't be useless. I have a special use in mind for you. I was going to stake your Viking myself, for all the grief he's caused me, but I have a better idea now. Since his attachment to you is so strong, I think I'll have you do it."

"I won't," I said.

"You will, my dear. Once I bring you over, you will bend to my will as effortlessly as you bend him to yours." Felipe approached me again, placing a hand gently around my neck. "You will do anything I ask of you." I saw his fangs protruding slightly and knew my time was short. I felt for Eric, felt his rage, but he was no where near.

"He feels your fear," Felipe said, inhaling in a long breath. He put one arm around my waist and pulled me against him, running his other hand around my neck. I felt his stiffness and started to panic. If he tried to turn me, I knew I would die, but I didn't know when. The bloodlust would take him, and he wouldn't be satisfied just to drink from me. I struggled against his grip, but it just aroused him more.

He ran a finger down my neck. I felt a sharp pain, then his tongue was licking the bleeding scratch. "I knew you would taste sweet," he whispered in my ear. His other hand roamed my back, like he was trying to seduce me. I tried to pull away from him, but he held me firmly in place. "You will be begging for me soon," he said.

"Wait," I said. I needed to think of something, anything, to make him stop, but I couldn't form a thought.

"No. He will find you through your bond. When he does, you will be mine."

His fangs sank in to my neck, and he sucked hard. His fingers scraped against my back, and he brought his other hand down to my breast. I tried to push him away, to fight him off, but I could feel the fight draining out of me. He moaned as he reached down and ripped at the dress, sending the font slit up to my navel. His hand went to unfasten his pants, and I fought with every bit of strength that I had.

I wrenched an arm free, pulled it back, then landed a blow against his ear with all my might. Felipe's mouth detached from my neck almost before my fist made contact. His expression was stunned. He doubled over and fell to the floor, writhing in pain. Without a second look back, I bolted through the door.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

I ran down the corridor as fast as I could. My hose covered feet had no traction, so I slammed into the wall at the end of the hall. Figuring it was better to get out of sight, I went through the door to my left and slammed it shut behind me.

I had no idea what I'd done to Felipe or how long I had before he'd be after me, but this was my one shot to get out of here. I listened at the doorway, trying to keep my breathing as quiet as possible, but everything was quiet on the other side for now. I reached out with my mind, and the only hole I sensed must have been Felipe, but something about the signature was off, though maybe that was due to my lightheadedness.

I looked around the room and saw two other doors. Maybe one of them led outside. I slumped against the door and slid to the floor, putting my hand to my neck. I'd stopped bleeding, but the lack of food combined with feeding Felipe had me feeling too lightheaded to move at the moment. I knew I wouldn't make it out on my own, but I was all I had at the moment.

I must have dozed off for a bit, because the next thing I knew there was a loud commotion on the other side of the door I'd come through. I sensed at least seven vampires and something else that was like a vampire, but fainter. If they were searching for me, it wouldn't be too hard for the vamps to follow the scent of my blood. I had to move. I chose one of the other doors and went through. It led downstairs, which was ominous at best, but a quick second guess revealed the other room to be a closet, so I took my chances on the stairs.

The passage at the bottom was dark, dank and cold, especially with the rip right up the middle of my dress. I couldn't sense anyone else, vampire or otherwise, in the passage, so I stumbled on until I found another door. There were two mental signatures behind it, one human and one Were. That must have been Frannie and Quinn. Though I really didn't think I was up to an heroic rescue attempt in my current state, I couldn't just leave them there, especially not after everything that happened earlier. I concentrated as hard as I could to be sure no one else was with them. I tested the handle, sure the door would be locked, but it wasn't, so I went in.

The room was dimly lit, but I could clearly make out two figures. A massive form, Quinn, lay slumped and still in one corner of the room, with two long chains trailing up to the middle of the wall. He was still naked, and his body looked bruised and bitten. In the other corner huddled a small, whimpering figure. Frannie. She looked up at me and then charged. For a moment I was worried she was turning into a tiger herself, she moved so fast and the snarls coming from her were so viscous.

"You bitch!" she shouted. "You bitch! It's all your fault! Bitch!"

I stumbled backwards as the chain connecting to Frannie's leg went taught. She grabbed a handful of my dress and yanked me forwards. Luckily, I fell down just out of reach of her claws. No, they were still just hands, but there was definitely a tiger raging inside her whether it could manifest on the outside or not.

"Frannie, shhhh..." I begged. "Please, shut up. We have to get out before they find us." I tried to keep my voice low and urgent, but I wasn't sure she could even hear me over her own cries. She tugged at the fabric in her hands, and my dress ripped further up. I rolled away from her and out of it, so I was lying on the floor in just my underwear. Well, I was still three pieces of clothing up on Quinn, I supposed.

Suddenly, Frannie looked up, and her cries stopped instantly. Her eyes glazed over, and she slumped on the floor. She'd been glamoured.

"Sookie, what the hell are you doing? You have to get out. Now," said Heidi.

I was too stunned to move. I was also trying to figure out if I was caught or not, but the pressure for my brain was just too much. After all, it'd been a pretty rough few hours.

"Come on," she said, pulling me to my feet. "We have to move quickly."

"You're helping me?" I asked, still trying to process the situation and not making much progress.

"Yes," she said simply, "But I can only help you until he recovers. How did you do it?" she asked.

"Do what?"

"Come on," Heidi said, pulling me again.

"We have to get them out," I said pointing to Frannie and Quinn.

"Sookie, we don't have time. If he orders me to, I'll kill you. Now come on." She was pulling me back towards the door.

"No." I said, planting my feet. I couldn't see Heidi's expression too well in the dim light of the room, but I could hear the desperation in her voice. Though it might have been smarter to leave without them and hope to be able to send a super rescue squad back later, I just couldn't do it. "I won't leave without them," I said firmly.

Heidi dropped my hand and her eyes scanned the room. She grabbed a jingle of keys and threw them to me. "Silver chains," she explained.

As quickly as I could, I rushed over to Quinn. His breathing was weak, but he was definitely alive. I unlocked the ring around Quinn's neck. I could almost see the difference it made. Silver hurt vampires far worse, but it appeared to be pretty unfriendly to weres as well. His breathing deepened and his eyes fluttered almost open.

"Come on, Quinn," I whispered in his ear, "We're getting out of here." His eyes fixed on mine for a brief moment before he was out again. "He won't be able to walk," I said to Heidi. "Can you carry him?"

I thought I heard her sigh, but she came over to us. "Get the girl," she said. I quickly unchained Frannie and pulled her along after me like a rag doll. Heidi lifted Quinn over her shoulder, despite the fact that he was three times her size. Slowly, with Heidi leading the way, we crept out into the dark passage.

If I'd been able to think, I probably would have wondered why the dozens of vampires in the compound weren't searching everywhere for us. I also might have realized that there was no way we could escape detection with Heidi carrying a 200—pound unconscious Quinn and me dragging a semi-conscious Frannie. Luckily, my brain wasn't up to thinking, so I just went along with it.

We passed a first set of stairs, the ones I must have come down, but continued along to a second stairway. Heidi set Quinn down at the bottom of the stairs while she darted up to check that our path above was clear.

"When we get outside, run straight to the white Lincoln," she said when she came back. "The keys are inside." I nodded and firmed up my grip on Frannie's wrist.

When Heidi said "Go", I ran up the stairs with the Frannie doll dragging behind me. We came out outside, on the far side of the building. It only took a second to locate the cars, and barely another to find my target. I threw Frannie into the back seat and ran around to the driver's side. The keys were in the ignition, just as Heidi said they would be. She lowered Quinn into the back, banging his bald head on the door, ceiling and window in turn. He had so many bruises already, I doubt he'd notice the difference.

"Get in," I shouted to Heidi, but she shook her head.

"I can't," she said. "The second he recovers, I'll turn on you. I won't have a choice."

Looking at Quinn and Frannie in the back seat and thinking of their mom, I realized what Heidi might be sacrificing to help us, or rather, who. "Heidi," I said, "What will happen to your son?" I didn't think I could bear another loss like Quinn's mom on my conscience, but I also didn't think I had a choice.

"Don't worry. Eric keeps him safe," she said with a soft smile. "Now go."

I started the car and drove. Two vampires came out of the front doors as we were pulling away, but they didn't follow us for long. Maybe Heidi fought them off, or maybe they just didn't feel like giving chase. Either way, I didn't care as long as we were moving far away from that place. I ran two red lights and a stop sign, but it was late enough there weren't any other cars or cops on the road. That was a very good thing since I wasn't sure how to explain the fact that I was wearing nothing but some skimpy underwear while driving around with a large naked man and catatonic teenager.

After maybe 5 minutes, the glamour wore off, and Frannie was no longer catatonic.

"Frannie, calm down!" I tried to shout over her, but it was pointless. She was hysterical. Her screams in my ears and in my mind were too much, and despite how much I wanted to keep driving away, I had to stop the car. I felt for Eric, but his presence didn't calm me down. He was beyond rage now.

Eventually Frannie calmed down to a heaving sob. She seemed to have realized we were out of immediate danger and that I was the reason. Though she still hated me with a fierceness you'd never have guessed she possessed with her small frame, she was willing to go along quietly, at least for now.

We'd been idle long enough. I started the car and drove down the road to who knows where. I'd never been to Little Rock and I hadn't been much for studying maps, but I knew we were north of Louisiana, so when I saw signs for I-530 south, I took it without a second thought. The freeway ended at a smaller highway, but it still went south, so I was content to continue along it. Frannie had quieted down to a few sporadic sniffles, soothed by the sound of Quinn's snores. Subconsciously, I synchronized my breathing to his, and slowly drifted to sleep.

"Sookie!"

I swerved and hit the brakes, screeching the car to a halt. Quinn's massive form pressed into the seat from behind me. I looked over at my new passenger, who's eyes were almost as full of shock and fear as mine.

"Claude," I said, relief washing over me.

He leaned across the armrest, pulling me into a tight embrace. He kissed my face and neck over and over and over, the way a mother soothes a child waking from a bad dream. Each kiss sent a warm current through me, and my heart beat strengthened. He was healing me, if only a little. Claude pulled back to look at me, leaving his hands on either side of my neck.

"That was close," he said. I didn't think he meant me dozing off at the wheel. After a minute, his gaze left my face and he looked me over. A smile quirked at the corner of his mouth. "Cutting loose a little, Cousin?"

Suddenly the realization of what I was wearing, or rather what I wasn't wearing, hit me and I pulled away from him, trying to cover myself as best I could with my arms.

"Can I borrow your shirt?" I asked.

Claude looked down at his own designer clothes with a pained expression, but he pulled his shirt over his head all the same, handing it to me. Gratefully, I climbed inside it. I still didn't have pants or shoes, but at least I was mostly covered now. Claude, now shirtless, was glowing faintly. It wasn't like a vampire glow, but there was definitely something magical about it.

"Where's Eric?" I asked him. I wasn't sure why, but I had a feeling he would know.

"The blood bond got confused when you were drained. He couldn't track you," he said. I knew his expressions well enough to know there was more the he wasn't telling me.

"Then how could you?"

"That's different," he said with a shrug.

"Claude, please, do you know where Eric is?"

"He's in Nevada," Claude said at last. "He's killing every vampire he crosses, searching for you." That explained what I was feeling through the bond.

"Good," I said. Though I might feel differently in the morning, right now I was pretty sure the world was a better place with fewer vamps in it. I would have happily let the Viking go on about his pillaging, except that I needed him here, with me. "Do you have a cell phone?"

"Not on me, but I can find him," he said. "Sookie, don't get bitten again."

At first I thought he was being a smart—ass, but his expression was gravely serious. "I didn't exactly volunteer," I said, defensively.

"And don't take blood from anyone other than Eric." Again, he was completely serious. I nodded, not sure how else to respond. "Keep driving south," he said. He kissed me on the forehead again and vanished. I just stared at the empty passenger's seat beside me.

"What the hell?" asked a stunned Frannie. I'd forgotten she and Quinn were in the car with us.

"Are you okay?" I asked her, turning around to check on Quinn.

"Who was that?" She was fine. Quinn's body acted as a pretty effective seatbelt. When his snoring resumed, I figured he was okay, too.

"My cousin," I said, and got back onto the highway.

About an hour later, we crossed the Louisiana State Line. I'd felt a calming through the bond a little while back, so I figured Claude had gotten to Eric. We must have been within an hour or so of Shreveport, but I couldn't go any further. The clock in the car read 5:37am, and the sky was already starting to lighten. I knew Eric wouldn't make it back tonight, either, so I pulled into a Motel 6. None of us had any money, but Frannie, the only one of us who was properly dressed, managed to talk us into a room for the night, well, morning, by leaving the car keys as collateral.

I pulled in front of a room at the back of the strip, away from the eyes of the sleepy desk clerk. Quinn had recovered enough to stagger into the room, with me and Frannie supporting as much of his weight as we could. He dropped onto the floor as soon as we were inside, and we just left him there with a pillow and blanket. Frannie went to give the desk clerk the car keys, and I crawled into one of the beds. I heard maybe two snores before I was out.

The sun was streaming in through a gap in the curtain when I woke up. I basked in the warmth for a several seconds before opening my eyes. I was alone in the room, but I heard the shower running. I was still speckled with dried blood, but apparently I had to wait for the shower. I had taken off Claude's shirt before crawling into bed, so I had something close to clean to wear. Looking down at what I could see of myself, I decided to wait and put it back on after I showered. I unhooked my garter belt so I could take off the blood stained hose that were now glued to my feet. While I was prying them off, the water in the bathroom stopped.

Quinn emerged, wrapped in a towel that barely offered enough coverage. I looked up at him, not sure what to say. We stared at each other for a minute until the nudity finally got the better of me. I took the sheet off the bed to wrap around me, turning away to give him what privacy I could in the tiny room.

"Sookie," he said, now standing right behind me. I could feel the damp warmth radiating off his body. I turned around to face him.

"Quinn, I'm so sorry–" but I didn't finish saying it before his lips were crushing mine. His hands wrapped around me, pulling me to him and off the floor.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't respond a little, but it felt all wrong. No matter how much I wanted to be comforted right now, it was Eric I wanted, and no one else would do. I felt Quinn's need and read the terrible mix of emotions coming off him, but I couldn't give him what he needed. Gently, I pushed against his shoulders, and he slowly put me back on my feet.

"I'm sorry," I said. I didn't think I was up to enumerating all the things I was sorry for, so I just left it at that.

He sighed. "I know who's responsible, Sookie, and he will pay." Quinn picked the fallen towel up from the floor and sat on the opposite bed, draping it across his lap. I tried not to look at the tent, and I hoped like hell it went down before his sister got back. I sat down on my bed, pulling the sheet higher around me.

"Where's Frannie?" I asked.

"She went to get us some clothes," he said.

I looked at the table between the beds but there was no phone. I figured when Frannie got back I could use the one in the front office to call Michael, Eric's day man. I was sure he'd be able to sort this out better than I could. I looked back at Quinn whose eyes were still burning. I could hear the battle in his head and knew he wanted to kiss me again.

"I better go shower," I said, taking the sheet and Claude's shirt with me.

I examined my battered body in the bathroom mirror. I'd been worse. The bruise on my cheek was purple and puffy, and my eyes were looking about the same from lack of blood and sleep. I couldn't tell how bad off my neck was, because it was still covered in dried blood. I dropped the sheet to the floor and removed what little clothing I had on. The water pooling at the drain was pink at first, but after a few minutes, it ran clear again. I felt for Eric through the bond, though I knew he was dead for the day.

Part of me was ready for a full force break down, but I knew it wasn't time for that yet. I heard chatter in the room when I turned off the shower and figured Frannie was back. I wiped the steam from the mirror after I'd dried off. The marks on my neck were a little more bruised than I'd expected, but then maybe that was because I'd been bitten only by Eric for so long that I forgot how bad vampire bites can be if the vampire isn't careful. I slipped back into Claude's shirt, which came down far enough, but only just, and wrapped my wet hair in the towel. For a moment I smiled at the realization that I was probably the only woman in the world annoyed that Claude liked his shirts fitted a little too snuggly.

I was too drained of energy to wonder how exactly Frannie had planned on getting us clothes with no money or credit cards. If I had thought about it, I might have been suspicious enough to listen to the thoughts of the people on the other side of the bathroom door. If I'd done that, then it might have given me pause to do something smarter than trot back into the bedroom, barely covered, with my trademark Sookie smile plastered on my face. However, in my exhausted state, that's exactly what I did.

And a large man with a taser gun was waiting for me when I stepped into the room. I had all of three seconds to register Frannie's frantic argument with another man and Quinn's fallen form before I was once again rendered unconscious.

In the last 36 hours, I'd been drugged, beaten, bitten and now tasered, most of which while bereft of proper clothing. I had no idea where I was, how I'd gotten there or who was behind it, though I was pretty sure I needed to have a long conversation with Frannie.

Slowly, I opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was a halo of white hair surrounding a dark, sharp face.

"Octavia?" I said, stunned.

"Oh, Sookie," she said, looking down at me. "I'm so sorry."

I wasn't sure what exactly she was sorry about, but finding out wasn't my first priority.

"Where are we?" I asked. I looked around the stark room. There was an exposed lightbulb hanging above us, and from the light it looked like we were in a large cell of some sort. There were two cots, the one I was lying on and another a little ways off against the opposite wall. There was a curtain hanging around what I guessed was a make—shift bathroom. The floor was cement, with a big, old oriental rug covering most of the middle. Really, it might have passed for a spartan bedroom if not for the bars along the one wall.

"Those fool fanatics have us locked in a basement," she said. "Somewhere near Shreveport I'd guess, but I can't say for sure."

I started to sit up, and she pulled me into a hug. "I'm so sorry, my dear." She meant it, I could tell, but I still had no clue why she was apologizing to me. I was pretty sure she hadn't been in on the latest kidnapping, but she seemed to think she'd done something horrible and that it directly affected me. I searched around her mind a little, but she threw up a barrier as soon as she felt me sifting around.

"I suppose I owe you the story," she said in a soft voice, pulling back from the embrace. "You must believe me, Sookie, I didn't know what they were planning." She was begging me to believe her, and I could read that she was telling the truth. Without a clue as to what she was talking about, I nodded for her to continue.

"When I went to Louis's house that night, before the coven meeting," she began, "it was all a wreck. I knew that something bad had happened, so I cast a spell to find him. I should have told the others what was happening, but I was worried there wasn't time. The spell was strong, but his essence felt weak, so I thought he must be near death. I rushed after him," she said, shaking her head slightly.

"When I found them, they had him tied up, and it looked like they'd beaten him up a bit, too. The woman, their leader, she told me they needed magic that he wouldn't give them. She said they'd kill him if he didn't do it. He looked so beaten. I told her I could do whatever they needed, if they let him go. I didn't know." She shook her head again. "I didn't know."

"What did Yvonne want?" I asked. I'd gotten a clear picture from Octavia's mind when she recalled her.

"She had a draught that made vampires ill," she said, "but only if they ingested it by feeding off a human. She wanted me to make it stronger. To make it deadly." The regret and remorse coming off of her was overwhelming. "It went against all my better judgment, but Louis's life depended on it, so I agreed to do it."

If I'd been more alert, I'm sure I would have figured out what she was telling me sooner, but as it was I was struggling to keep up. I did at least get the main point.

"You started the vampire flu?"

"No, but I certainly helped it along," she said. She was pissed about something, but we hadn't gotten there just yet. "Sookie," she looked me straight in the eyes, and hers were full of pity and remorse. "I didn't know how she wanted to use it. I swear. I thought they just wanted to protect themselves. Even with Louis's life in the balance, I would never have done it if I'd known."

Finally, things started clicking into place. "They drugged me?" I sat upright on the cot, swinging my legs over the edge of it. "That's what was in the soup? But . . . that doesn't make any sense . . ." I stopped dead.

"I'm so sorry, Sookie," she said again. Tears were forming in her eyes. Whatever reaction Octavia was expecting from me, it certainly wasn't the one she got.

I doubled over laughing hysterically. For a good long minute, I thought I might suffocate. I was laughing so hard I could barely breathe. I looked up at Octavia's distraught face, and it just made the fit worse. "She wanted to poison Eric," I said through my laughter. It wasn't funny, not really, but I couldn't stop. Eventually the indescribable expression on Octavia's face brought me around.

"Octavia," I said, running my hand along the marks on my neck, "Eric didn't do this. He didn't bite me." Then I sobered up suddenly, thinking of how close we'd been, so many times. But it wasn't Eric who'd bitten me, it was Felipe. And now – I tried to stifle another giggling fit – he had the flu!

"What?" she said, and it was her turned to be stunned. "But . . ."

"Felipe," I said. "He had me kidnapped yesterday. He was trying to turn me, to overthrow Eric. He bit me, and then he just collapsed." The satisfaction of knowing his fate and the reason for it was almost enough to drive away the tension from knowing how close it came to being Eric.

Octavia smiled a little smile.

"He's going to die?" I asked, openly gleeful at the prospect.

"In a few days, most likely," she said. "Eric hasn't bitten you?" she asked.

"No, Octavia, he's fine. He would have, but the timing was just always wrong." I couldn't help but laugh again, and this time Octavia joined me. She'd been thinking she was responsible for killing Eric, and the guilt was gnawing at her something awful. I relished in the relief that swept over her.

Unfortunately, when the reality of our situation started sinking back in, my mood sank with it.

"If they still have you here, where's Louis?" I asked when I was back to my senses.

"Oh, he's here, too," she said. Now that her guilt was dissolved, Octavia's primary emotion was righteous anger. Louis had betrayed her to the Fellowship of the Sun.

"But why?" I asked. She knew I'd read her mind, she'd let me after all, and understood the question.

"After Katrina," she said, and her voice was a little softer, a little more compassionate, "he was found by a nest. They were trapped under a building, and he tried to free them. But they kept him, and . . ." She didn't need to explain, I was watching Louis recount the story in her memory, and his expression told me all I needed to know. "He began it," she said, talking about the vamp flu, "but he wanted it stronger. He tried everything he could think of, but nothing would make it lethal."

"Silver," I said, echoing Octavia's thoughts.

"After Amelia discovered a way to break the bond between you and Eric, he realized the same magic would probably work for the draught."

"But y'all never told anyone how y'all did it, so he couldn't do it on his own."

"No, and he thought I wouldn't do it for him," she said. Her voice was fully of regret. She might have, if he'd asked her, and that knowledge was eating away at her conscience. "So they came up with a plan."

"I'm sorry," I said, placing my hand on hers. I could feel her pain at the betrayal. She let her anger overwhelm her hurt, but the hurt was there and it was a powerful thing.

"Sookie," Octavia's voice was suddenly urgent, "you have to get out of here." No kidding.

"Any ideas how I go about doing that?" I asked with a dash of sarcasm in my voice.

"The woman, Yvonne, she wants Eric dead. She's set on it. Sookie, if he comes here to find you . . ." And I saw it in her head. They'd all taken the draught. If Eric came here and bit any one of them, he'd die. And he would come, I was sure of it. He would find me as soon as the sun set, and he'd kill anything in his path. One bite, that's all it would take.

"Is there a cure?" I asked her, but I'd already read the answer in her mind.

"No."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Octavia and I sat in silence for a long while. She kept her mind closed to me, which was a blessing. I couldn't focus on keep my shields up while trying to figure out this mess we were in. I had so many questions and the list seemed to be getting longer by the minute.

The answers could wait, though. The more urgent matter was somehow contacting Eric. He was dead for the day, so I couldn't use our bond even if I had an idea of how to do it.

I wondered about Claude, if I could summon him in some mystical way, but if there was a way to do it, no one had ever bothered telling me. He only ever popped in when I was in desperate need of help. I thought back to a conversation I'd had with Claudine about the popping in thing. She's told me it took a great deal of magic and could only happen in the most dire of circumstances. Though my current situation felt dire enough, I suppose it didn't qualify as imminent death.

I wondered if Quinn were here, somewhere. Piecing together the bits I remembered before being hit with the stun gun, I was pretty sure that Frannie had tipped off the Fellowship. She hated me, that was for sure, but I didn't think she'd done it with malicious intent. She was clearly upset with the way the situation in the hotel room had gone, especially the part where Quinn was once again unconscious. Still, it was definitely her who contacted the Fellowship.

Octavia told me that Louis had put up wards to block Amelia's spells, so there was little hope that she would just happen to find us before nightfall. Then again, Amelia had managed to get the location pretty close already. Maybe she and Alcide would be able to track us by magic sniffing.

My stomach interrupted my thoughts, letting me know I'd neglected it for far too long. It must have been over 36 hours since I last ate. The faint smell of burgers and fries floated down the hallway. My stomach grumbled again in anticipation.

Octavia's back straightened as Yvonne stepped in front of the bars. She was holding two bags from Wendy's. The grease stains discoloring the bottom made my mouth water.

"I figured you'd be hungry," she said, as if being politely hospitable. She set the bags on the floor through the bars. Immediately I went to retrieve them, handing one to Octavia. She didn't take it fast enough, so I just set it on her cot.

It occurred to me as I bit into the most delicious double cheeseburger I'd ever tasted that they might be trying to poison me again. At the moment, I really didn't care. For one thing, I was already contaminated by Octavia's virus, or whatever it was, so I didn't think that could get any worse. For another, I was just too ravenous to care.

Yvonne pulled a chair up in front of our cell while I chased the burger with equally greasy and equally tasty fries. Octavia was looking defiant, with her back straight and her body turned towards me instead of the bars. She hadn't touched the bag of food. Though her mind was still mostly closed, I was getting a clear sense of hostility from her. Then I got a direct thought, _Have mine, too._ I wasn't sure if she was on a hunger strike or just realized my need was greater than hers at the moment, but either way I didn't need to be told twice. I snatched up her bag and sank my teeth into burger number two.

"The girl tells us that you've infected the King of Nevada," Yvonne said. "Well done, Sookie."

"Bite me," I said through a mouth full of fries. Even Octavia laughed a little before going back to stoic.

"You have to see it now," Yvonne said, "how evil they are."

I wasn't about to defend Felipe de Castro. He'd definitely gotten what he deserved. But I wasn't giving Yvonne the satisfaction of agreeing with her either, so I just kept on eating. Eventually, the ravenous impulse calmed a little.

"They're just like people," I said. "Some are good and descent, and try to do the right thing, and others keep people locked up in basements."

"You and the witch will be free to go, as soon as you've helped us infect Eric Northman," she said. The pain and conflict in her mind broke through my shields as she said Eric's name. I opened my mind up to her as much as I could. Something was off about Yvonne's thoughts. She was clearly human, but something was very muddled, especially where Eric was concerned, and I had no idea why.

"You have to know I'll never help you," I said. "He'll figure this out."

"How can you want to defend him, after everything you've been through? If he really loved you, he wouldn't have passed you off to that vile monster the way he did. You have to see that, Sookie. He used you up, showed you off and then passed you along to the highest bidder. You poor girl. You don't even see it."

I saw that she thought Eric had given me to Felipe, the way he'd passed her off years ago. She thought he was through with me, and that now I'd be willing to help them, with a little coaxing from an sympathetic friend.

"Eric didn't give me to de Castro." I said.

"You think it was an accident that he showed you off to his friends?" she asked. "He dressed you up in the fanciest clothes and paraded you around his house, and then stripped you bare to show you off in his bar. What kind of monster degrades a person like that?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked. Then I saw us in her mind, in Fangtasia. She was jealous as she remembered watching him undress me and hover over me, about to enter. It was more than a twisted fantasy. It was almost exactly what happened the night Russell and Felipe came to Fangtasia. But no one else had been there that night. Surely one of the vamps would have noticed the scent of human near by, or I would have picked up on her thoughts. Did that mean Russell was somehow involved with the Fellowship? No, I couldn't believe that. But there was something I was missing.

"Oh, Sookie," Yvonne said, her voice full of compassion. "I know how hard this is for you. I know how hard it is when you realize someone you love so completely cares nothing for you. But denying it won't change anything, and it won't make it hurt any less."

Yvonne rose from her chair and approached the bars. "If you help us, we can take him down. Then he won't be able to do the same to anyone else. You can help us destroy him." The glint in her eyes was fierce. She couldn't reconcile her dueling feelings for the Viking, but she was singleminded about her actions. She wanted him dead, and she hoped that would stop the ache in her heart.

I'd known friends who'd had tough break ups before. Arlene had been a mess after husband number three left her for a younger woman. Tara had a tough time getting over Eggs and his orgy fetish. I'd had an inside look at both women's hurt, and it went all the way to their souls. They'd felt like they'd given every little bit of themselves and then some, but it wasn't enough. Their pain, it was a shadow compared with what I felt after Bill confessed to me his true motives for moving back to Bon Temps. Even now, I couldn't bear to think of how much that had hurt me. But all these feelings we all had, they were nothing, nothing compared to the pain in Yvonne. Her ache went deeper and was sharper than anything I'd ever known or hopefully ever would know.

I knew Eric's virtues maybe better than anyone else. He was absolutely gorgeous and an amazing lover, beyond anything I'd ever thought possible. He was always thoughtful and at times unexpectedly sweet. But even if Yvonne had in the past what I now had with Eric (which she so didn't, since our connection is made that much more intense through the bond and Eric told me he'd never given her his blood), I couldn't see how losing him would cause her this much pain after so many years. It just didn't make sense.

I went through all this in my mind while trying to sort her thoughts from her overwhelming emotions. There was no point telling her again that Eric hadn't left me or given me away. She wouldn't believe me. So I decided to change the subject.

"What's happened to Frannie and Quinn?" I asked her.

The question took her a little off guard. She'd been expecting me to realize that Eric had used me and to break down and agree to help her. Maybe the shock of it was why she answered.

"The girl and the beast were given the aid they needed," she said. "I believe they've gone to Arkansas to gather their mother's remains for a proper burial."

So Quinn just left? I suppose he'd done all he could to help me, more than he should have maybe. But I still was hurt that he'd known I was taken, again, and didn't try to put up a fight.

"Sookie, we want you to go back to Eric and let him bite you," Yvonne said. She sounded like she was sorry to have to ask, and she was. I could read enough of her mind to know she thought she was asking a difficult thing, for me to go back and face the man who'd used me and tossed me away.

"Why me?" I asked, silently going along with her assumptions about why I might be reluctant to do it.

"So far, he hasn't bitten anyone else that we've sent," she said. "He almost bit me, but you stopped him." Through her thoughts, I saw her provoking Eric so he would attack her. Then there was a fangbanger, dancing in front of him, practically stripping, but Eric ignored her. Then Selah – Selah! – cutting her finger and offering it to Eric. Yvonne was remembering these moments as if she'd watched them on a television, but I knew she hadn't been present for the last one, at least.

"All right," I said, trying to play the role Yvonne had in mind for me. "What do you want me to do?"

Octavia stirred, but she stayed quiet. I hoped she wouldn't give me away, though how Yvonne could possibly think I would turn on Eric so easily was beyond my brain to fathom. Then again, she saw him differently from me.

"From what we can tell, he went on a rampage last night, so he's probably well fed now. Tomorrow evening we want to send you over to his house shortly after sunset. You just need to provoke him enough to bite you. Even a drop will be enough, though the more he drinks the faster he will fall."

"Okay," I said, trying to sound reluctant. "Okay. I think I can do that." It couldn't really be this easy, could it? Were they really going to let me just go back to Eric?

Yvonne smiled at me. "I know you don't believe me, but this really is for the best." She turned to walk away.

"Wait," I called after her, "aren't you going to let us out?"

"I'm not that naïve, Sookie. You'll be safe here until tomorrow evening." And she left.

"She doesn't believe you," Octavia said when Yvonne had gone.

"Not completely," I agreed. "But she wants to believe me. That's something."

"Even if you convince her, they won't let us go. Not me, anyway."

"Why not?" Octavia had done what they'd wanted. Sure, the vamps were in the dark for now about how the virus was spreading, but they'd figure it out eventually. Once the secret was out there'd be no need to keep Octavia locked up anymore. Of course, I planned for us to be out of here long before any of this happened.

"Louis thinks I can reverse it," she said. "He isn't willing to give this up, not now that it's fatal. I think the only reason he hasn't –" She stopped and pulled in a deep breath. "He must have loved me at some point," she finished.

Oh. If they really believed that Octavia could find a cure, then they'd never let her go. Not alive, anyway. We had to get out of here and fast.

"Louis and I were going to dream share," Octavia said. She was leaning back against the wall with her eyes locked on nowhere in particular.

"What's that?" I asked.

"It's a ritual for lovers," she said. "We link our subconscious minds together so that our emotions flow between us. I suppose it's not so different from the blood bond you share with Eric. Ironic, isn't it? Once we are linked, when we fall asleep at the same time, we dream together."

"That sounds nice," I said. Eric and I barely even slept at the same time, but I could imagine perfectly well what Octavia was describing. It reminded me of how it felt when I'd taken the shaman juice. Eric and I were in perfect harmony with each other. That night seemed like ages ago now.

"If the love is true," Octavia continued, her voice a little more wistful, "then the dream can show the lovers' future, up to the moment one of them dies. When that day eventually comes, the magic binds them together, so they can find each other even after death."

I thought about that, and how romantic it sounded. I've always believed in heaven, and more than once had conversations with folks I knew had gone there. Gran, of course, and my parents. Even Hadley once or twice. Gran always told me and Jason that our parents were still together, up in heaven, and that we'd all be a family again some day. I believed her when she said it, and I still believed her now.

But what about Eric? He'd been around for a thousand years and would probably, hopefully, be around for a thousand more. But I wouldn't. I was fine with that. I didn't want to be a vampire, even if it were possible for me to be turned. So one day I would die and go to heaven. I wondered how much I would miss Eric. Maybe time would be different there, like it is for Niall and the other fairies off wherever they've gone. But even if it didn't feel like I was waiting so long for Eric, he might never come. I wasn't sure how vampires fit into the heaven picture, but even if Eric were headed that way in the end, he might never die. These were strange thoughts to have, as I sat in a cell worrying about that exact thing: Eric's final death.

Octavia had fallen silent with her memories of a love that might have been. I felt the pain inside her more now that she'd let the anger fall away, if only for a moment.

"Is there no way you can contact Amelia?" I asked her. "She's close by, and she's looking for you."

"No. Louis has set too many wards around this building. Nothing can get through. I've tried everything. You'd have a better chance of hearing her thoughts than I would of reaching her magically right now."

And that was it! I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it sooner. Octavia couldn't contact Amelia, but there was someone I could contact. I folded my legs in front of me on the cot and closed my eyes. I concentrated on the little rental house in Bon Temps as hard as I could.

_Hunter! Hunter! Hunter!_ I called his name silently, as urgently as I could. After a moment, when I was almost ready to give up, I felt his mind.

_Aunt Sookie?_ He was confused, the poor boy. I hated to do this to him, but he was my only chance to get word to Eric in time.

_Hunter! Oh, Hunter! I need your help._ I thought to him as clearly as I could. I kept my mind focused on what I needed to ask him to do, so that he wouldn't see any of what had happened to me over the past few days. Lord knows I didn't need to be putting those thoughts into his young mind.

I didn't get a clear thought back from him, more of a strong emotion of anger and hurt. Then I saw the reason. He was mad at me because I'd missed the barbecue last night. Neither Claude nor I were there, and he thought it was because we didn't want to see him. Oh, no. He'd heard Jason talking to Remy, and he knew I was gone, just like Hadley had been. Poor Hunter, he thought I'd abandoned him just like his mother had.

_Baby, Hunter, I'm right here. I'm just in some trouble right now that's kept me away. I promise you, sweetie, that as soon as I get this sorted out, I promise I'll make it up to you_. This is how I'm translating, but my thoughts, of course, were a little less articulate. Mostly I sent him waves of love and regret for having missed the party. I could hear the tears stopping in his mind even as I felt some leaking from my closed eyes.

_Hunter, I need your help right now. Can you be strong and help me?_

_Okay_, he thought. He wanted to prove he was brave and up for the challenge I was going to give him. He wanted to prove he deserved to be loved. I wanted so much to tell him I'd love him no matter what he did, but I wasn't sure how long I could keep up the connection. It was taking all my energy to "talk" to him for this long. If I got out of here, I'd have plenty of time to tell him how complete and unconditional my love for him was.

_Is Bubba there with you, every night?_ I asked my concentrating on the famous face as hard as I could.

Hunter thought about Bubba, too, and I saw that he was there every night at dusk. I just had to hope he'd be there tonight.

_Tell him to tell Eric don't bite don't bite don't bite don't bite don't bite don't bite_. I couldn't afford a long message, so that was the best I could do. I only hoped it wouldn't get too garbled along the telephone chain from little Hunter through addled Bubba on to Eric, if it even made it that far.

Hunter thought the message back to me, to make sure he had it right. I sent him again all the love I could before I lost the connection.

When I opened my eyes, Octavia was starring fixedly at me.

"Did it work?" she asked.

"I think so, but it wasn't Amelia I was able to get to. Let's just hope it worked."

Waiting for a terrible event to happen is just about the worst thing. Knowing that, at any moment, a bloody battle would break out around you and there was no way to know exactly when. Also, there was nothing you could do about it. Since we were stuck downstairs in a windowless room with no clocks, we weren't sure what time it was. The best I could tell was that Eric was still in his daily death, so the sun hadn't set just yet.

I paced around the room in Claude's shirt while Octavia sat, fully dressed, on her cot. After about 30 minutes, we switched places. A bit after that, Eric woke up. Octavia noticed my response to the sensation and immediately became more alert.

"It's dark," I said. She nodded once, then went back to pacing.

Eric wasn't angry at first, just antsy. Of course, he had been anticipating that I would be back tonight, and I wasn't there when he woke up. I tried to follow his emotions, to get a better sense of what was going on, but when his rage erupted, the force of it was so powerful it knocked the wind out of me.

"What is it?" Octavia asked, coming to help me up. I'd fallen to my knees from the blow.

"He knows . . . something," I said breathlessly. "He's coming."

"My spells cannot penetrate the walls of this building," Octavia said, "but maybe they'll work inside it." She sat on the floor with her legs folded under her. She placed her hands palms up on the tops of her knees and started to chant. The words didn't sound like Latin, but they were definitely ancient. The smell of magic started to waft from where she sat and encompass the room. As her concentration increased, her mental shields dropped, and I saw in her head more clearly than I had since I'd woken up here.

Octavia was casting a spell to heal cuts and scrapes. She was protecting everyone in the building from bleeding. I was sure that the spell wouldn't do much against a pair of fangs sunk into flesh, but at least it would keep the temptation lower if there wasn't fresh blood everywhere. I pulled back out of Octavia's mind and stayed as silent as I could so as not to break her concentration.

The closer Eric got to me, the closer he got to danger, but all I could feel was desire and relief. Just when I heard commotion upstairs, the urge to rush out to meet him was overwhelming me. I threw myself against the bars with all my might, determined to rip them out of the concrete walls and run into my Viking's arms. Of course, no matter how much of his savage strength I was feeling through the bond, it didn't actually make me any stronger physically. The bars barely rattled at my efforts, almost as if they were laughing at me.

"ERIC!" I shouted to him. If he was in the building, and I knew he must be by now, he would hear me. "DON'T BITE THEM!"

The misty magic started receding from the room, so I knew Octavia had finished casting for now. She came to stand beside me. She was sweating from the effort of the spell, but she looked determined and brave. She was ready for a fight.

As our inner tigress spirits flared up, a real tiger bound down the passage towards us.

"Quinn!"

The tiger came up to the bars. There was blood on his mouth and one of his paws. He growled a deep, rumbling growl at us. I pulled Octavia back to the wall with me, away from the door. Quinn threw his 400 pound body against the bars. They weren't laughing anymore. The gate broke away, taking a good chunk of wall with it.

Octavia and I climbed out of the opening and chased after the tiger, heading back down the hall. Three Fellowship men appeared in the doorway, blocking the stairs. They trembled at the sight of the massive tiger. Two of the three fled back up the stairs behind them, but the third lifted a gun from a holster on his hip. With shaking hands he aimed it at Quinn.

The tiger launched forward just as the gun went off. I heard snarls and screams, but couldn't decipher what was happening. A mist swirled up around them, and the thick air made a familiar sloshing noise. Soon Quinn was human, and naked, and shot.

I rushed over to him and rolled him off the shooter, who had been knocked unconscious from the blow. He was also bleeding profusely from the head, but I didn't care about that right now.

"Quinn! Oh my God! Quinn!" I pressed my hands against his bicep to stop the bleeding.

"Silver," he said, through clenched teeth. I turned his arm over to make sure the bullet had gone through. If he had silver inside him, it would be very, very bad. Luckily the bullet had passed through. I ripped the shirt from the Fellowship man to tie around Quinn's arm. He'd be okay. The wound wasn't too bad.

"Check the woman," Quinn said. His voice was already sounding stronger, but my temporary relief evaporated once I'd processed his words. Octavia!

I turned around and she was gone. Not gone, just down. The bullet had found her after it passed through Quinn. Shit! Leaving Quinn to tie off his bandage, I rushed over to the witch. The fire was bright in her eyes, which was a relief. The bullet had just grazed her shoulder. She was shaken and no doubt in pain, but it wasn't too serious. I helped her sit up.

"Are you okay?" I asked. "Can you move?"

"Let's get the hell out of here," she said.

I noticed her wound had already stopped bleeding. I knew it was just a graze, but it wasn't that slight. Then I realized it was the magic. Octavia's spell was accelerating the clotting. I hadn't thought it would be useful for this, but I was even more grateful for the spell now.

I helped Octavia to her feet and then did the same for Quinn. He was completely naked except for the shirt scrap tied around his bicep, but that was the least of our problems. We had to get out. Luckily, we didn't meet too many people on the way out who were interested in stopping us. The one time a human got in our way, it was because Rasul had just thrown him across the hall. He flew passed quickly enough that we kept moving.

We could see the door to outside, knocked crooked off its hinges. As we approached, a man stepped in front of it. He was also armed with a gun. \Quinn and I stopped when he raised the gun, but Octavia didn't miss a beat. She marched up to Louis, drew back her uninjured arm, and socked him in the face with everything she had. Octavia may be a little mature, but her fury packed quite a punch no matter how old she was. Louis went down with the blow. Octavia marched right over top of him and out the door.

After the shock wore off a bit, Quinn followed after. He paused when he realized I wasn't following him.

"Sookie, let's go," he said urgently.

"No. I can't leave Eric." As if he heard me, a loud and ancient battle cry sounded from somewhere down the hall to my left. Without another glance for Quinn, I darted off in the direction of the Viking warrior.

I rushed into the room where Eric stood. His clothes were splattered with blood, but his mouth was clean. Thank God! I started to his side when someone yelled for me to stop. I turned to see Steve Newlin, the underground leader of the militant wing of the Fellowship of the Sun. He had a gun pointed at me in one hand and a wooden stake by his side in the other. Yvonne was beside him, armed just the same, but her gun stayed fixed on Eric.

"They have silver bullets," I warned Eric. He growled. For a moment I thought that rushing those last twenty feet to touch him would be worth the risk of being shot. I felt him reaching out to me through the bond, those his eyes stayed fixed on the guns. I really hate guns.

"You vampire whore," Steve said, "You deserve no better than them."

Then several things happened in quick succession, or maybe all at once. As best I could tell when I thought back on it, the order was something like this. Eric threw something at Steve's head. Steve fired the gun at me. Something large knocked Steve's head almost clean off, at the very least breaking his neck. Eric threw himself in front of me, blocking the bullet. Yvonne and I just stood there, too dumbfounded to move.

I did move, though, when Eric's body hit the floor at my feet. He'd taken the bullet, the silver bullet, right in the chest. He was coughing blood bubbles and his eyes were fading. I bent down to him. I knew he needed blood, and fast, but I couldn't give it to him. I looked around for help, but found only Yvonne. Her face was as full of tears as mine, though not for the same reason.

"He knew," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "He knew they were silver. He knew it would kill him." Her pain was almost unbearable, and I was getting a diluted version of it.

She realized now what I'd been trying to tell her all along, that Eric loved me. It was shattering that little bit of something she had left. She'd told herself, over and over for years, that he was a monster incapable of love. She'd convinced herself that he was able to treat her the way he did because that was the way he was. Now she realized that he was capable of loving someone so completely, that he was willing to give up his own precious immortality for her mere mortal body. And the woman he loved wasn't her. It was me. At the realization, Yvonne's pain morphed into outrage.

"Before you die, you'll know pain worse than mine," she said to Eric. Then she lifted the gun and aimed it at me.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

I listened in her head as Yvonne made up her mind to shoot me. It wouldn't matter if I begged and pleaded with her, she was beyond reason now. Eric couldn't take another bullet for me, even if he wanted to. I gripped his arm as he lay at my feet and braced myself. I looked at Eric's face. Even contorted in pain it was the last thing I wanted to see. I saw his lips move, but it took a moment for me to resister that he was speaking.

"Yvonne, stop." The authority in Eric's voice was not diminished by the gurgling noise in his throat as he spoke. Yvonne's body froze at his words. She wasn't in shock, she was in thrall. Eric's eyes were still not staying opened, and I knew he didn't have the strength to glamour anyone right now, but somehow he had Yvonne under his command.

I felt Yvonne's brain trying to fight it, but so far Eric was winning. She was completely under his control, at least for the moment. I turned my attention back to Eric. The blood was soaking his shirt so thoroughly that I couldn't see where the bullet had entered. It couldn't have been his heart, I told myself, or he'd be dead.

I felt through the wet fabric to find the small hole. It was in the center of his chest, just at the bottom of his rib cage. Sliding my fingers in the hole, I ripped the shirt apart to look at his chest. Blood was gushing up out of the wound like an opened fire hydrant. Eric's hand reached for mine, or maybe he was reaching for his chest, before his entire body fell limp.

The moment he was out, Yvonne snapped out of the trance. Luckily for us, at the same moment, Pam came into the room. She took one look at Eric, then turned to Yvonne. By the time Yvonne had gathered her thoughts enough to remember what she'd been planning to do, Pam flashed over to her and snapped her neck. Then Pam was kneeling on the other side of her maker.

"Feed him," she commanded me. There was desperation in her voice more intense than I've ever heard in a living being.

"I can't," I said. Part of my mind registered that Pam's tone was gleeful in comparison with mine. "Silver bullet," I said.

"Get it out," Pam ordered. Then she lifted her wrist to her mouth and bit. I put my lips to Eric's chest and sucked with all my might while Pam forced her blood into him. His body twitched at our combined efforts. The normally sluggish blood was gushing into my mouth from the wound. This was nothing like the love nips I gave him in bed, and I felt nothing other than sheer desperation for it to work.

Finally, the bullet flew out of his chest into my mouth, chipping one of my teeth. I turned away from the vampires and spit the vile thing onto the floor. I was immediately aware of the effects drinking Eric's blood were having on me. The trauma of the past few days was fading fast, and I could feel the injuries all over my body healing themselves.

"It's out," I said, not daring to sound triumphant just yet. When I looked up, Eric's hands were gripping Pam's wrist, and he was sucking in her blood all on his own. Pam's eyes were closed as she fed him, and I didn't care one bit if they were getting turned on from the exchange so long as it worked.

I rested my hands next to the hole in Eric's chest and watched it heal over. When there was barely a dent left, I bent my head down and kissed the spot. His fingers wove themselves into my hair and he made a soft moan of pleasure.

"A little lower, my little bullet sucker" he said, barely above a whisper. There was more sex in his voice than pain, but the pain was still there. The tension in my heart relaxed. If Eric was thinking mostly about sex, that meant he would be okay. Pam was sitting back on her heels, licking her own wrist.

"Eric," I said, lifting my head to look up his body. His eyes were open and bright again. With his grip on the back of my head, he pulled me up to meet his lips. He kissed me slow and deep, licking his blood off my lips and face. I forgot everything about where we were and why with the first touch of our lips.

"Is this really the time?" Pam asked impatiently. She rocked back onto her feet and stood up.

"Perhaps not," Eric responded. His voice was steady, but Pam still bent to help him to his feet. It rattled me to the core to realize that he needed the help. That was enough to bring me fully back to the present. I spared a glance for Yvonne, sprawled out over Steve Newlin's body, as we headed for the door. I might shed a tear for her later, but right now I had none to spare.

We passed over a fallen vampire on the way to the front doors of the building. He had blood on his face and was convulsing on the floor. A pudgy man in his late forties was crawling away from the vampire, clutching at his neck. Pam kicked the man in the head and snatched up the vamp. She had been weakened by her donation to Eric, but was still strong enough to hoist the body over her shoulder and keep pace with us.

When we were in view of the outer doors, Eric stopped leaning on me. I wasn't sure if it was because he was feeling that much better or because he didn't want to appear weak to the contingent just outside the building. Rasul was standing there with Quinn. Quinn had found a pair of shorts, I was happy to see, but the Were he was clutching was naked as the day he was born. I recognized Peter from Eric's office ages ago. He had a bullet wound in his leg, but he looked fine otherwise (though given his lack of clothing, I tried hard not to look too closely). There were three wolves standing beside them. I recognized the large black wolf right away. Pam passed off the sick vamp to Rasul.

"Take him to the doctor," Eric ordered. "Then meet us back at Fangtasia." Rasul left with the spasming vamp. Eric faced Alcide. "Come to the bar. Bring the tiger and witches."

Quinn broke his gaze off from me to scowl at Eric's orders, but then nodded once. The black wolf let out a long howl as Eric, Pam and I headed across the parking lot.

I followed Pam over to my burgundy Lexus. Eric's arm was locked around me, but I was no longer supporting any of his weight. If anything, he was supporting mine. Pam went around to the driver's seat. Eric opened the rear door, and I climbed inside, scooting over to make room for him. He followed me in, but didn't stop at his seat.

Eric leaned over to me and pulled my legs underneath him. My head would have hit the window as my body slid down, but his hand was there in an instant to pull my face to his. His lips were urgent on mine, and his hands kept pulling my body closer to his. For a while, he was content with the kissing and pressing, but then he seemed to realize that I was wearing only a man's shirt, and he exploited the easy access. His hands caressed my breasts and pinched gently at my nipples. I jerked in response and pressed myself harder against him.

Making out in the backseat of a car sounds all romantic, but if one of the participants is a 6'4" Viking, it can get a little cramped, even in a luxury car like we were in. Still, it felt so right being back in contact with him, that I didn't care one bit about the seatbelt buckle digging into my side or the vampire in the front who I was sure was stealing glances in the rear view mirror. I did care when Eric's mouth moved from my lips down to my neck.

"Don't bite," I groaned. He made a hungry noise in response, but his fangs didn't so much as scrape my skin when his mouth latched on to my breast.

I gasped when he entered me. I suppose some part of me didn't think we'd actually have sex in the back of a car while Pam was driving, but our need to be together was so intense that practical considerations like audience and venue just didn't matter. What mattered right at that moment was that Eric was buried so deep inside me I thought he might not be able to find his way out again, and that was just fine by me.

Eric whispered something in his native Viking tongue as he pressed deeper inside. I squirmed against something pressed hard into my back, and he reversed our positions so that I was straddling him. I bent my head down to his neck so it wouldn't bang on the ceiling as we drove. His hands reached around my back and up to my shoulders, and he pulled me harder. As he slid his large hands down my back again to guide my hips, I felt the tension building deep inside. I pressed my lips back to his, partly out of need and partly out of fear that he'd bite me if his mouth ventured anywhere else.

I felt his body start to jerk below me. Then we were riding on the same powerful wave of pleasure that we'd been missing for far too long. Eric kept his arms wrapped firmly around me, and I nuzzled his neck as my head lay on his shoulder. As the aftershocks faded, I realized the car wasn't moving anymore. Though I wasn't nearly as embarrassed as I should have been, I turned around to look for Pam. She had left at some point after she'd parked the car in the lot behind Fangtasia.

I felt the red flushing my face as I looked around at the other cars parked nearby. Fortunately, they were all empty, but I had a suspicious feeling they hadn't been that way for the whole time we'd been here. Though I was still technically wearing the shirt, and Eric still had his pants mostly on (I'd left his blood soaked shirt at the Fellowship), anyone walking past would have known what we were up to. While everyone already knew that Eric and I had sex, knowing and seeing were two different things.

Eric kissed me lightly as said, "We must go inside."

"Um," I hesitated, not wanting to sound whiney, "I'm not exactly dressed for a debriefing."

He smiled at me. "Use the shower in the back. Pam will leave clothes for you."

Reluctantly, and with a lot of contorting that reminded me that I really should try that Yoga video Tara had given me, I climbed off of Eric and out of the car. I was startled when he staggered after me. Vampires don't normally stagger, Eric especially. I rushed to his side, not sure how to help or if he'd let me.

"You need a donor," I said. I didn't like the idea of Eric feeding off anyone other than me. It had been an emergency with Pam, and I was rational about that. Though I was much less happy about him draining some fangbanger, I knew he needed blood to finish healing. I was willing to suck it up if he was.

"The synthetic blood will be fine," he said in a tone that closed the conversation. Though undeniably relieved, I wondered at his insistence. I didn't think he was being so adamant just to spare my feelings.

I was glad not to meet anyone on my way to the shower. Pam had indeed set out some clothes from the gift shop. I had a fitted t-shirt sporting the jazzy Fangtasia logo, a skimpy thong and a pair of sweats that read "Bite me" across the butt. Thanks, Pam. Still, it was the most comfortable outfit I'd worn in days and it was clean, so I didn't mind too much, even when I registered the fact that she'd left off out a bra. I'd be pretty cold outside without a coat, but inside the ensemble was warm enough.

Before I left the bathroom, I checked my injuries out in the mirror. I was healing almost as fast as a vampire. The marks on my neck from Felipe's attack were barely red, and the bruises I'd suffered all over were no longer swollen. There was a red mark on my left hip that looked rather much like a seatbelt buckle, but even that was fading back to tan. I ran the brush Pam had left through my wet hair a couple of times before leaving.

When I walked into the main bar, it looked odd. Not only was the fake renovation now actually under way (due to the scuffle with Felipe a few days ago, no doubt), but the bar was crowded with an odd assortment of beings.

Quinn, now properly bandaged and clothed in a t-shirt and jeans, was sitting next to Alcide. The latter was also fully dress, though he was unscathed from the raid, and Amelia was seated right next to him. I smiled when I saw that they were holding hands. Octavia was next to Amelia, looking still a little rough but much better than she had been in our shared cell. I walked past the bar, behind which Rasul was heating up synthetic blood. "Nice pants," he said as I passed by, "May I?" "You wouldn't be happy afterwards," I said, giving him a little smile.

Eric sat next to Pam, and I made my way over to sit on the other side of him. He'd pulled on a clean t-shirt as well, but he still smelled like sex to me. If I could smell it, being the only non-supe in the room, then I was sure everyone else could. I flushed a little red as I took the seat next to him. For a moment, Eric looked like he was going to pull me onto his lap, but after a second thought, he just pulled the chair right up next to him.

Rasul came over with four bottles of True Blood. He set two in front of Eric, one in front of Pam and kept one for himself. I noticed there were already two empty bottles on the floor beside Eric while he drained one of the two Rasul just gave him.

Octavia began her explanation of the Fellowship plot and vamp flu, starting from the beginning with Louis's abduction in the aftermath of Katrina. I was worried about her when she got to her role in the evolution of the illness, and Rasul's fang display only made that worry worse. Eric stayed calm and held a hand up to Rasul to show he needed to back off. Alcide and Quinn slid a little closer to the elder witch, as if to indicate she was under their protection, and I was glad for it.

Pam took a narrative turn after Octavia, explaining how she and Eric found Quinn at Felipe's hold up in Arkansas. Rasul called after them, with Bubba's message (thank you, Hunter!), and they were able to put together a pretty good picture of what was going on. The vamps decided to ask the Weres to join the raid since they weren't susceptible to the illness.

After Quinn explained our breakout, I still had a few lingering question. "How did you stop Yvonne?" I asked Eric.

"She was in my service for a long time," Eric said. "I'd had much of her blood, too much. She became a slave to my will. That can't be taken back," he explained.

"That's why you sent her away? So she could have a life again?" Poor Yvonne. My pity for the woman came back, despite what she would have done to me.

"That, and she was an insufferable bitch," Pam said. Eric shrugged as if in agreement.

Something else was nagging at me. "Did you find an informant anywhere? Maybe a fangbanger who was really working for the Fellowship?"

I got a few head shakes. Eric looked at me puzzled. "Yvonne knew things and saw things that she couldn't have seen," I said, trying to work out the puzzle. "It was like she was watching us from somewhere close by."

"Maybe she tapped into the surveillance cameras," Amelia suggested.

"We don't have surveillance cameras in the bar," Pam said, "though it's not a bad idea."

"Then what's that?" Amelia asked, pointing up to a corner of the ceiling. Sure enough, it was a small camera.

Rasul went an ripped it out of the wall, staring at it as if it were from outer space. Vampire often weren't so great with modern technology. After getting a signal from Eric, Rasul started making the rounds, inspecting the walls and ceiling for more hidden cameras or microphones.

"What are our losses?" he asked, getting back to the more important issues.

"Maxwell bit one of the humans," Pam said, "but otherwise none of us was harmed." She gave Eric a significant look, as if silently adding "Except you".

Eric looked to Alcide next.

"Peter was shot," Alcide said, "As were Quinn and Octavia. Their injuries are minor."

Eric nodded. These were acceptable casualties. He'd finished the second bottle of synthetic blood, his fourth so far. When Rasul came back, he glanced at the table and then went back to the bar to heat up two more bottles. Eric would need the real thing soon.

"Can you cure the illness?" Eric asked the witches. Pam tensed beside him. Amid the chaos of the past few days, I'd forgotten that Jamie, her child, had gotten the virus.

"No," said Octavia.

"Not yet," amended Amelia, ever the optimist. She looked at Pam, her eyes filled with compassion. "But we're working on it."

"Dr. Ludwig has been making some progress on prolonging the lives of the infected," Eric said, more to Pam than Amelia or Octavia. "She will share what she knows with you," he said to the witches. Amelia nodded.

"How long will the contamination stay in the humans?" Eric asked. His eyes stayed on the witches, but his hand found mine below the table and he intertwined his fingers with mine. The contact sent a flutter through me.

"Forever," Octavia said. "There is no way to reverse it."

It took Eric all of half a second to snap. He knocked the table over on his way to the witch. Luckily, he was far enough away and the weres were on high enough alert that they blocked his path to Octavia just in time. Pam and Rasul followed in Eric's wake, and the four held Eric back with great effort. Amelia and Octavia were on their feet with their backs against the wall.

"Eric!" I shouted, finally coming to my senses enough to take action. "Eric, calm down. It won't hurt me. It doesn't affect humans."

"You will fix her, witch!" He snarled, still struggling to break free of the eight arms locked around him. If he'd been at full strength, I was sure he'd have broken through their grasp.

I didn't understand his overreaction. I supposed it made sense that he'd be pretty upset that he could never feed from me again, but it wasn't like we couldn't be together at all. Heck, we'd done all right in the backseat of my car not an hour ago. Besides, we'd gone without swapping blood before, and though I knew it would be hard, I was sure we could manage again, if he wanted to. Then I suddenly realized that maybe that was the problem. Maybe Eric wouldn't want to be with me anymore if he couldn't feed off me. Of course Eric loved me, I wasn't so foolish as to doubt that, but maybe that wouldn't be enough for him in the long run, and he knew it.

My heart sank as I thought all this over the course of about three seconds. I was so absorbed with my own onslaught of depression, that I barely registered the calm coming back through the bond. When I checked back in to the situation around me, Eric was letting himself be pushed back by Pam and Rasul.

"Fix this," he commanded. His expression terrified even me.

"Go," Pam told him, still pushing him backwards. They were back to were I was standing now, so I carefully reached out to touch Eric's shoulder. He turned, and when he saw my face his fierce expression faltered. Through the bond I felt his desperation overtake his anger. If he wasn't calmer, at least he was less homicidal.

"Come," Eric said to me, and we headed for the back door. He flipped out his phone when we were in the car and punched one of his speed dial numbers.

"Meet us at the house," he said into the phone, then abruptly hung up without waiting for a response on the other end of the line. We drove home in silence. I couldn't understand the emotions I was reading from Eric. He was outraged for sure, but there was something else as well that his rage was masking . . . despair.

"Eric, its going to be okay," I said. I wanted to believe that he was just worried about me and what effect the poison would have on me. He didn't respond, so I stayed silent for the rest of the drive.

I was surprised to find Claude waiting impatiently for us when we walked in the door. He was standing a ways off, to keep a safe distance from Eric I figured.

"What?" he said by way of greeting. Why had Eric called Claude of all people?

Eric's eyes dilated a little and his nostrils flared, but he kept his cool and his distance.

"Her blood has been poisoned," he said. "I cannot feed from her." How this was any of Claude's business was beyond me. I was about to tell Eric just that when the fairy responded.

"For how long?" Claude asked. Suddenly he was less impatient and more . . . worried?

"The effects are permanent unless the witches can figure out a cure."

Claude's beautiful face sank into a look of despair that I'd never seen him wear. The sight almost brought tears to my eyes.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Is there a way around this?" Eric asked, ignoring my question.

Claude chose to answer him instead of me. "No. This was the only way, and Niall used all his power to make it happen."

"He will find another way," Eric said, not bothering to conceal the threat in his voice.

"There is no other way." Claude fixed me with a look of sadness that made his face even more ethereally beautiful.

"I don't understand." Obviously, since no one was bothering to explain anything to me.

Finally, Claude took pity and answered me. "Without the bond with Eric, you will die."

Okay, not what I was expecting. "What? That doesn't make any sense. I was perfectly fine before the bond, and I survived when it was . . . broken. What are you saying, I'm just going to keel over if Eric can't drink my blood? That's ridiculous."

"You'll age," Claude said, as if that were the worst fate imaginable.

"So what? I'm aging every day. I can't stay in my twenties forever. So I'll grow old. Big deal. Everyone else does it every day. I'm not a vampire or a fairy, and I'm fine with that."

"But we're not," Claude said. There was love and affection in his voice, along with the sadness.

I looked over at Eric, who'd been quiet for far too long.

"Lover, I cannot bring you over, but did you really think I would give up so easily?" he asked.

Then something started clicking into place. "The letters from Niall. You were negotiating with him about me?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"We did what was necessary," Eric said. He was avoiding the question. There was something more he was keeping from me, I got that loud and clear through the bond.

"Well one of you had better start explaining."

"You share part of Eric's immortality through the bond," Claude began, "and part of mine as well."

"That's why you keep visiting so often?"

"That and because you can't seem to stay out of trouble."

"But Eric and I are already bonded, so how does it matter if he can't bite me anymore?"

"The magic was difficult to work out," Claude said. "Vampires and fairies were never meant to unite, not like this." He gave Eric a rueful look indicating he wouldn't mind uniting with the Viking in a blood free way.

"The magic is fragile," Eric said, taking over from Claude's prolonged pause. "Our bond must remain strong and must be renewed often to keep the spell in place. And you must be close to the fairy, to tap in to his essence, equally often. If either of these connections is broken . . ."

"I die?"

"You'll age," Claude said. "And eventually, you'll die."

I thought about what they were doing for me, and once I got past the secrecy part of it, I appreciated how much they wanted to keep me around. I hadn't asked for it, but now that I was losing the one shot at immortality that I never knew I had, I was feeling a small fraction of their pain.

"That's why you won't feed on someone else?" I asked.

"It would weaken the bond. If we were able to renew it soon afterwards, that wouldn't matter."

"What else would weaken the bond?" I'd caught a flicker of a thought from Eric, and I knew there was something more I was on the verge of knowing.

"If either of you feeds on another," Claude said, "or has another bonded."

"Pam?" I asked, suddenly wary.

"No. The only danger is between a human and a vampire."

"Bill?"

The silence was sudden and complete. Neither the vampire nor the fairy met my eyes.

"Claude," I said, picking the one most likely to tell me, "do you know what's happened to Bill?"

"Yes."

"Tell me."

"Do you really want to know?"

"Tell me."

"Niall was concerned that since you'd taken blood from Bill more than once, and his attachment to you was so strong, that he would weaken the spell binding you to us." Claude was very matter-of-fact as he spoke, but he had the decency to look guilty.

"Niall killed Bill?" My voice was shaking. Bill had risked his life for me many times, and almost died rescuing me from Thing One and Thing Two. Part of me thought he might willingly have gone along with this plan, in order to give me this great gift, but I didn't think anyone had asked him. And they sure all hell hadn't asked me.

"No," Claude said, hesitantly. "He's not dead. Just drained."

I stared at him, waiting for more.

"Niall didn't want to stake Bill since he'd helped save you from Lochlan and Neave, so he thought draining him and replacing the blood would break whatever connection there was. He'll recover. Eventually."

I turned to Eric. "Did you know about this?"

"I did not know for certain that Niall had taken Bill," Eric said simply.

"But you suspected," I accused.

"Yes. I had my suspicions."

"He agreed, you know," Claude said. I turned to him, shock reading clear across my face. "Bill agreed." Oh. For a fleeting moment I'd thought he meant Eric had agreed to let Niall take Bill. I was pretty sure Eric would have agreed to it, but I was glad that he hadn't been asked.

After a couple of awkward minutes, I figured out what I wanted to do.

"Claude, I know I owe you huge thanks for everything you've done for me for the past couple of days," I said. "And I suppose I owe you and Niall a lot more than that, but right now I just need to sleep." I took Eric's hand beside me.

"It might help the bond if we all sleep together," Claude said with a playful glint in his eyes. Eric's eyes lit up as well, but not from lust. "Maybe not," Claude said, rethinking the idea.

I walked over to where he stood and gave him a big hug. He may be obnoxious to the core, but there was something lovable about the fairy deep down. Deep, deep down.

Claude sidled past Eric and left us alone in our house for the first time in I couldn't remember when.

"Do you really want just to sleep?" Eric asked, and now the glint in his eyes was all about lust.

"Eventually," I said. Then we renewed our bond as much as we could without the blood.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

I lay in bed, wrapped in Eric's arms, for at least an hour after I woke up. Sometimes I missed waking up to the sun streaming in my window, but not this morning. Once I was out of bed and showered, I headed to the kitchen to start the coffee. I wasn't too surprised to find Claude waiting for me. He looked like he was on his second cup already. I was surprised to see that he'd made breakfast.

"Thanks," I said as he handed me a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon with a biscuit.

"Have you talked to the witches?" Claude asked.

"I just got up," I said, shoveling a forkful of eggs into my mouth. The eggs were a little on the cold side and the bacon a little on the floppy side, but it felt like years since I'd had a proper meal, and I was grateful.

"They have to fix this," Claude said.

"If there's a way to do it, I'm sure Amelia will find it. Now stop staring at me like that while I eat," I said. "This is great, by the way."

"There's more," he said, gesturing towards the stove. The large cast iron skillet was overflowing with fluffy yellow eggs and there were a dozen strips of bacon set out on paper towels on the counter. Beside that was a cookie sheet filled with buttermilk biscuits. Claude had had a busy morning.

After I finished the first helping Claude served me, I went to the stove for seconds. Claude just sat at the counter drinking his coffee.

"There's no big rush, you know," I told him. "I'm not even 30 yet. Even if it takes Amelia a year to figure it out, I won't be decrepit by then. Besides," I looked down, not wanting to meet his watery eyes, "I don't mind getting older. This is the way I always thought my life would go."

"The door is closing," Claude said. I waited. "I have to decide."

"You mean you might leave? Go back to faery with Niall and the rest of the fairies?"

He nodded.

"I'll miss you," I said. There was no surprise in my voice as I said it, only sincerity. "But I understand."

"Claudine would have stayed with you. She would have wanted to share her essence with you and tie her life to yours. She loved you," he said.

"I'm sorry that she didn't get to choose," I said. "I miss her."

"I love you, too," he said.

I stared at Claude's beautiful but melancholy face. I couldn't read his mind, because he was a fairy after all, but I could tell for certain that he was absolutely sincere.

We sat in silence while I finished my second helping. When I was rinsing my plate in the sink, I remembered that I had an important phone call to make.

"Hi, Remy?"

"Sookie! Are you okay?"

"I am now, thanks to Hunter. Listen, it's a long story and I promise to fill you in soon, but is it okay with you if I pick Hunter up from school today?"

"Um, okay. You sure everything's all right?"

"Positive. I'll drop him off at your place around 4'o'clock."

"Okay. I should be home by then."

"Thanks, Remy. See you this afternoon." I said, and we hung up.

"Can I come, too?" Claude asked.

"Of course," I said. I took his hand in mine and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I love you, too, you know."

Claude and I were waiting outside Hunter's school when the bell rang and children flooded the sidewalk. Hunter knew I was there, he could hear the buzz of my mind, so he took his time coming out to let me know he was still mad. When he saw us standing at the corner, waiting for him, his smile gave him away almost as soon as his thoughts did. We sandwiched Hunter between us, sending him into a gitty giggling frenzy. The three of us went to the playground, and I explained what I could to Hunter, after thanking him repeatedly, while Claude pushed his swing higher than it should go. We were an odd family, but we worked.

After we dropped Hunter off at Remy's, we were thoroughly forgiven for our absence at the barbecue. Claude stopped me as I was about to get in my car.

"I'll stay," he said. "Whatever happens with the witches."

I went up and kissed his cheek. He held me in a tight hug and kissed me back.

"I'm glad," I said.

The sun was low on the horizon as I drove back to our house in Shreveport. Eric stirred a little as I climbed back into bed with him, enough to swing a limp but heavy arm across my stomach, but he stayed dead for a few more minutes.

When the sun was setting, I felt the rush of his emotions fill me before I felt his arm tighten around me, pulling me closer to him. His lips brushed my hair as he inhaled my scent, or maybe Claude's scent. I was expecting him to run his hands and lips over my semi-naked body so that we could pick up where we left off last night. Instead, he rose out of bed and began searching for his pants.

"I must check on Pam," Eric said in response to my emotions, which were annoyed, hurt and confused.

"Huh?"

"Her child will die soon. The pain may overwhelm her."

As Eric left I chided myself on behalf of Gran for being so self-centered. I'd spent the day with Claude who was so mopey about my mortality that I'd forgotten that I wasn't the only one whose long life depended on the witches finding a cure. I pulled my skirt and blouse back on and followed after Eric.

Pam was sitting on the couch in the middle of the living room having down time. She barely responded when Eric put his hand on her shoulder. He walked around to the other side of the couch. I thought for a moment that he might sit down with her and try to comfort her, but instead he pulled her to her feet a little forcefully.

"The Fellowship headquarters must be searched. Take Heidi and be thorough," he said. Still barely responsive, Pam gave a slight nod and began towards the door.

"Will she be okay?" I asked once she had left.

"I've lost a child before. It is not easy, but Pam is strong."

I walked into the living room and wrapped my arms around Eric's bare chest. He lifted me up, and I obligingly loosened my grip only to wrapped my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck.

Holding me like that, he kissed me long and deep. The heat started to build, and I felt his fangs scraping against my tongue and then neck.

"Don't bite," I said. My voice was raspy and slight, but I knew he heard me.

His teeth teased at the flesh of my neck, pulling it into his mouth and sucking hard. His fangs ran the length of my collarbone, but he didn't bite me. He pulled my hips hard against his lower abdomen, and then released slightly before pulling me back against him.

I lifted his mouth back up to mine, then let my hand run down his chest to fumble with the buckle of his pants. He let me pull back enough to make room for my eager hand. Finally I succeeded, and I ran my hand around his length. He moaned from deep inside his chest, and the next second my back was against a wall and he was deep inside me.

He pushed into me with a steady, rising rhythm, and soon his mouth left mine and his fangs scraped against my shoulder. I ran my fingers through the back of his hair and pulled back as hard as I could to reclaim his mouth with mine. I was feeling his emotions with such intensity that I couldn't tell which of us wanted to bite the other. As the tension and pleasure grew, I could tell his restraint was wavering. I still had enough coherent thoughts to be worried that he would give in and bite me. He still needed blood, I could tell, and he hadn't had any in almost a week now.

I could hear deep growls echoing his desire for blood. His mouth broke free from mine and latched on to my breast. I arched against him on the verge of exploding. I could feel his desires, and with a small shock realized that I could hear his thoughts. It was a good thing, too, because I heard the moment he gave in and decided to bite. With strength I didn't think I possessed, I wrenched his head back and sank my teeth into his neck. We came together in a blast of intensity that sent us through the wall and into the next room.

Eric's weight on top of me pressed my back into the rubble of dry wall beneath us. Once I was back in my own body, I noticed the sensation and made a small noise of protest. He rolled us over, still keeping me pressed firmly against him. I licked his neck, which had already healed, and he stirred beneath me.

"That was close," he said.

"You need to feed." This time, my voice held no note of whining at the thought. Eric needed blood, and since I was off the menu for the moment, it was going to have to be someone else. The question was, how could we find a donor who we knew wasn't contaminated.

"We have a meeting tonight at Fangtasia," Eric said. "I must explain the new developments to the other nearby rulers. We will have to employ tasters until the witches resolve this."

I had a vision of the vampire bouncer taking a straw to all the fangbangers as they came to the bar.

"Not quite like that," Eric said, "But we will have to test them somehow. We cannot risk further infections."

I started down at him in shock. Once I was over that, I sent him a clear mental message. His expression hardened, along with other parts.

"You would deny me sex with you when I'm already denied your blood?" he asked.

"Eric, if you bite me . . ." I couldn't finish the sentence, even to myself. "You need to find a donor. We can't risk you losing control."

"The witches will fix this, lover," he said. The confidence on his face would have had me convinced if I hadn't been able to feel the doubt and worry coming from him through the bond.

At Eric's insistence, I went with him to Fangtasia. Russell was there, of course, as were Stan, who was not looking his best, and another vampire I'd seen in Arkansas when Felipe killed Quinn's mom. I supposed he must have taken charge of Arkansas. A few others joined by video, which I thought was neat. Eric briefed everyone on the infection and how it was spread. He blamed Louis and the Fellowship for its development. I was glad he'd left Octavia's name out of it.

I started to doze off after a few hours – vampire political discussion aren't always exciting blood baths. I would happily have gone back to Eric's office, or even back home, to leave them to it, but I could feel Eric's need to have me close. Eventually, the coming dawn brought the discussions to a close.

"This changes everything," Russell said. "One has to wonder if we were right to make ourselves know to them."

"Right or wrong, this is the state of things," Eric said. "We will contain the toxin as well as we can, but it will spread. We must call a summit."

"Yes. I will begin preparations immediately. Oh, I can't wait to see how Eliza takes it!" Russell's expression was suddenly gleeful.

Pam had come in at some point and taken her seat by Eric. Now that everyone else had left, she handed him a small box. When Eric looked inside it his fangs ran out.

"Give the other to the tiger," he said, pocketing its contents. Pam nodded.

"Pam," I started, not sure what I was going to say. But I didn't have the chance to finish. Pam let out an inhuman scream that nearly brought the roof down. Then she collapsed onto the floor. Eric, too, was knocked off his feet from the backlash of her pain. I had a brief moment to enjoy the irony of being the only one left standing before the pain made my knees buckle, and I joined the vampires on the floor. Jamie was finally dead.

I woke up the next morning exhausted. Then I realized it wasn't morning, but afternoon. All of the emotional stress of the past weeks was taking its toll, and it didn't help that Eric and I still had a strict no biting rule. I looked around the kitchen for Claude, but finding myself alone, I turned on the coffee and dialed Amelia.

"Hey, Sookie," Amelia said. She sounded tired, but not exhausted. "How's the recovery coming along?"

"I'll survive," I said. "But Jamie didn't."

There was a long pause. Finally, I asked, "Can I come see you?"

"We're at Alcide's," she said. "Come before dark."

"I'm on my way now."

I noticed a few extra cars in Alcide's driveway. Searching with my mind, I could tell that he'd stationed a contingent of Weres around the perimeter, just in case. Even though Eric had decreed that Octavia should not be harmed, I didn't think the vamps would listen any more than Alcide did, and I was glad he was being careful.

Amelia answered the door before I knocked. She pulled me into a hug, and then we went inside. The kitchen was a bubbling, steaming mess. Amelia was normally more of a neat freak than I was, so the sight was pretty disturbing.

"I'm working on the cure," she said. "But, Sookie, I don't think there's anything I can do." Not only was she a neat freak, but Amelia was a very proud witch. She hadn't given up on Bob the cat after several weeks of failed attempts to return him to his human form, but here she was giving up on this after only two days.

"It's not like you to give up," I said, stating the thoughts in my head since she wasn't privy to them.

"I know," she said. I could hear the defeat and disappointment in her head. I gave her a one armed hug as we walked passed the kitchen into the living room. Octavia was on the couch reading a book . . . of spells from the looks of it.

"How are you?" I asked the elder witch once we were all seated.

"Better," she said. Octavia looked me over, scanning my neck for the scar Felipe had left, but it wasn't there anymore. "His blood still works?"

"Eric's? Sure, why not? I mean, it's not like I meant to drink his blood or anything," I said, suddenly on the defensive. "He was shot with a silver bullet, and I had to get it out." _Also, we were having sex and he was about to bite me if I hadn't preempted him_. I didn't think I needed to explain that one.

"Hmm," she said.

The three of us chatted for a while. I explained to them what Claude and Eric had told me the night before last, and why they were so anxious that Eric be able to drink from me.

"So that's why he overreacted," I said. I wanted them to understand. "To him, you'd just pronounced me dead. It was a lot to take in an already tense moment, I guess."

"Wow," said Amelia. Her brain said the same thing, only louder and more emphatically.

"Yeah," I said.

"They're harnessing the power of the blood bond?" Octavia asked. She hadn't spoken a work since our terse greeting half and hour before.

"That's what they said. If I'm tied to Eric and Claude, then I can live forever. Well, at least as long as a fairy. I'm sure not exactly how long that is, but I know it's a long time."

"Oh, Sookie," Amelia said, "I'm so sorry!"

"Don't be," I said. "I didn't know about until then. And honestly, if they'd asked me first, I'm not sure what I'd have said. I mean, I want to be with Eric for a long time, but I'm not sure how I'd feel about living forever, or near to it."

After that discussion ran its course, we talked a little about Jamie, though neither Amelia nor Octavia showed much grief at that. I supposed I couldn't blame them. From everything I'd heard about Jamie, she wasn't exactly trying to mainstream.

Louis, it turned out, had fled to somewhere unknown (though Octavia seemed to know more than she was letting on), but none of us liked his chances for outrunning the vamps. Octavia still sounded sad when she spoke about him, but it also sounded like she'd come to terms with the situation. Eventually, we were all caught up on everything and it was getting close to the time I was supposed to meet Quinn.

I hugged Amelia at the door. She was happy with Alcide and it sounded to me like she was planning on staying in Shreveport for a while. I was glad she'd be close again.

Octavia took my hand as I was leaving. Though I couldn't read her thoughts when she didn't want me to, I could tell she was steeling herself to say something important, something she almost didn't want to say.

"Let Eric bite you," she said. I stared at her, not sure how to react. "Even in my rage when I thought they'd killed Louis, I knew what I was doing was wrong," she said. "If he means you no harm, he won't be affected."

I stared at the witch in disbelief. Amelia's mind was rendered silent for a moment before she exploded, if only internally, with questions for her mentor. She was annoyed and hurt that Octavia had kept this vital piece of information from her, and at the same time in complete awe of the elder witch's power and subtlety. Though I agreed with all of Amelia's emotions in part, I also wasn't sure whether or not to trust Octavia. I could tell how hurt she was after all that had happened, and Eric's life was too much to gamble.

My thoughts were a tangled mess by the time I met up with Quinn. He seemed to be in a similar state of confusion, so maybe we were a good pair.

"Hey babe." He greeted me with a kiss on the cheek. "You're looking better."

"You, too," I said. "How's Frannie?"

"She'll survive. I didn't know she'd been talking to those nut jobs," he said, meaning the Fellowship of the Sun fanatics. "She blamed the vampires for everything, and maybe she's right, but those guys are just as bad as the vamps. After Rhodes, I just – I didn't think she'd go there. She didn't know they were after you, Sookie. She didn't know what they were doing."

I nodded, not sure yet if I believed what he was telling me. Doubt was everywhere these days. Still, it didn't really matter. Frannie was a confused girl who'd just seen her mom butchered and her brother beaten. I could understand.

"What are you two going to do now?" I asked.

"I don't know," he said. He sounded both lost and relieved. It was an odd combination, especially for Quinn. "I'll take Frannie somewhere, I suppose. Try to get her on her feet. Maybe I'll go back to what I was doing before, but I'm not sure." _If I can stand to work with those bloodsuckers anymore_, he added in his thoughts. Then he stared at me, aware of what I'd heard. He only looked apologetic for a second. He meant it, and he wasn't ashamed.

"Everything's different now," I said. "With this virus, they'll have to start behaving better."

"Frannie took it," Quinn said. I knew he was lying, but I let it be. He thought that the knowledge could protect her, and I knew he'd do whatever he could to find a way to make the statement true. He needed to protect her, no matter what. She was all he had left now.

"I'll tell them," I said. I took his hand in mine, so he'd know I meant it. I owed him this much, at least.

"Will he keep you? Now that he can't bite you?" he asked.

It was a personal question, and Quinn hadn't put it in very flattering terms. Still, I wanted Quinn to know the answer. "Yes," I said, and then pulled my hand out of his and stood up. "We love each other. Nothing has changed that."

Quinn made a skeptical noise, but said nothing as he rose to stand beside me. I tried hard not to read his thoughts so it wouldn't spoil the effort of his silence.

"Eric wanted me to give this to you," I said, handing him the small box. I had a feeling I knew what was inside it.

A wicked smile crossed Quinn's face when he opened the box. "I wish they would find a cure," he said. "This death will be too good for him. I doubt he even noticed then they pulled them out." Quinn took the fang from the box and put it in his breast pocket.

"Take care of yourself, Sookie" he said.

I hugged my arms around his massive frame. He felt warm and I felt safe. We let go after a moment, and I could tell that this time he was really letting me go.

"You're a hard woman to forget," he said.

"Then let's not forget," I said.

He smiled. "You got it, babe."

My time with the witches and then Quinn had taken longer than I'd planned. I also had to stop by to see my brother before I headed home. Luckily Eric's blood had healed all of my visible wounds, so Jason didn't get too worked up. I gave him an abridged version of events, and he was content not to know more. By the time I was back home, the sun was well below the horizon.

Pam was in the living room watching the television when I walked in.

I heated up a microwave dinner for myself and called out to the living room to see if she wanted another True Blood.

"If you wanted to add another door to the guest room," Pam called back to me, "you should have hired the wolves. Eric isn't good at everything."

"He didn't mean to knock out the wall," I said. "He just got carried away."

"Mmm," she said, if that counts as a word. "I almost forgot how nice it is when he gets carried away."

I brought my plate and the bottle for Pam to the living room. When I walked in, my back was to the TV, but I could tell from Pam's rapt gaze and the moaning sounds coming from the speakers that she was watching a rather engaging sex scene.

"He never did that with me," Pam said as I handed her the bottle.

Curious, I turned around to look at the screen. There was a blur of movement, and then I saw a magnificent white body pressing into a soft tan one. I recognized that ass.

"Or that," Pam said. The onscreen Eric had just performed a rather remarkable rearrangement of body parts that now left me bearing all to the camera and with an expression of intense pleasure that looked almost lethal.

"It does take a certain finesse," Eric said from behind me. "That move took me nearly a century to master."

Finally the embarrassment burned through the shock. I fumbled around for the remote and turned the TV off. Unfortunately, the sound was still moaning through stereo, but I had that silenced with another click.

"Where'd you get this?" I asked Pam once I was sure my voice was steady enough.

"At the Fellowship," she said with not a trace of guilt in her voice. "There's another one as well, but I think I prefer this one. The camera angle is more revealing."

For once, I had no retort.

"Pam," Eric said, "did you retrieve all of the copies?"

"Yes," she said. "And Heidi found this at de Castro's mansion." She handed my wedding band to me. Gratefully, I slid it back to its rightful place on my left hand.

"I'm going back to New Orleans," she said, more to Eric than to me.

"Yes," he said. "The system must be put in place immediately."

"I will see it done."

The three of us walked to the door. Pam hadn't packed anything to take with her, and her car wasn't parked outside. I thought maybe she would run to New Orleans. I wondered how long that would take. She'd probably find the run just what she needed to move on from her loss. I hoped that would be the case.

"Sookie, my friend," she said, "I hope they find a cure for you. Eric would not be the same, and neither would I."

I was shocked at the powerful emotion in her words and voice. Despite all my recent losses, it felt like my family, at least my extended family, was growing. "Love you, too, Pam," I said.

Eric stepped out with her, maybe even ran a few miles with her. When he came back a few minutes later his hair was windblown into a tangle. I heated up a blood for him.

"What's on the agenda this evening?" I asked with little enthusiasm. Mostly, I just wanted to rest.

He fixed me with his gaze and I sank into the blue depths of his eyes. "We have time," he said as though trying to convince himself.

I handed him the warmed bottle, and we went to sit on the sofa. "I spoke with Amelia and Octavia today," I said. I recounted for him the news about Louis and the coven. Eric didn't seem all the interested, but he didn't interrupt. He was content to stroke my hair as I rambled on about my conversation with Quinn.

"The other vamps, they won't blame this on you, will they?" I asked after my story came to an end.

"It doesn't appear so," he said. "Felipe was pushing for that, but now that he is in no state to push, my position should be secure. It would help, of course, if the witches could find a cure. But even without it, we will be fine."

I thought for a moment about whether or not to tell him what Octavia had said, but I knew Eric would want to try and I wasn't sure yet if I trusted the witch's words. So I kept silent.

"I can tell you're conflicted," Eric said, "but I can't tell about what."

"So many things," I said. I was getting better at evasion the more I hung out with vampires and fairies, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. Something else to be conflicted about, I supposed. "What should we do tonight?" I asked.

"Watch a movie?" he suggested.

I laughed. "With vampires?" Eric loved watching cheesy vampire movies. I'd even bought him a season of Angel once he'd all but memorized my Buffy DVDs.

"Oh, yes," he said.

He took the remote and turned on the TV. We picked right up where Pam had left off, and soon were reenacting the best parts and adding to the soundtrack. Eric's hands were everywhere on me, pulling me back to him the second our skin was out of contact. I felt his need through the bond and it echoed my own. I lost count of my orgasms sometime after three. My body and mind were so relaxed that I realized too late to be on alert. His fangs sank deep into my neck as he reached his own release. He drank from me with a fierce hunger, not for blood but for the bond that we both felt weakening.

After the pleasure began to fade, we jerked apart and stared at one another, waiting. Eric looked poised for battle, but it was a battle I knew he couldn't win. I felt a trickle of blood run down my neck onto my chest. Normally, Eric would have licked the wound closed, but he didn't dare do it now that he'd come back to his senses.

We waited.

Nothing happened.

We waited longer.

"Octavia said," I began, but I was too afraid of disturbing the silence to continue. When Eric's posture relaxed slightly, I began again. "Octavia said that it won't affect you if you have no intention of hurting me."

Eric's eyebrows pulled together into a displeased expression.

"I didn't believe her," I answered.

More waiting.

Then Eric roared with laughter. The sound of it chased off all of my anxiety. I saw the pink flush of his cheeks and realized he would be fine. He leaned forward to lick my neck. His tongue cleaned up the trickle that had escaped. He didn't stop once the wound was sealed, instead he picked right back up again. This time, when the moment came, he bit into my shoulder and at the same time I bit into his. The bond flooded open between us with the exchange, and our thoughts and feelings were indistinguishable.

Afterwards, I was completely worn out. I leaned back against him on the couch, basking in our renewed bond, unable and unwilling to move. I felt Eric's desire for another round, but he felt my exhaustion and contented himself with stroking my stomach. As I drowsed, sated and sleepy, he occasionally ran a hand around my breasts or his tongue along my ear or neck, but he didn't take it further.

"We have time," he said, and now he meant it. Now, we had all the time in the world.


End file.
